Our Crazy Beautiful
by ilovetoplaybball
Summary: Troy and Gabriella DID sing together on New Years of their Sr. Year, but Gabriella never transferred to East High. Now they show up at the same college with a few unexpected surprises. Chapter 1 is so short bc it's just the intro! Keep reading after that
1. Flash Forward

_In this story, Troy and Gabriella DID sing together on New Years of their Sr. Year, but Gabriella never transferred to East High. Everything else is the same, as in, Troy & Chad are best friends, play basketball, Taylor is extremely smart, they don't get along…There will be more of Gabriella's life at first because this is the first time you're hearing about it!  I know…blah blah blah!_

I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor.

_**Episode 1**_

_**Everything Changes **_

**----------------------------------------------------------------------------_Gabriella_****----------------------------------------------------------------------- **

_**A**_s she sat in the large window, looking out over the waves crashing into shore, she wondered how her life could have changed so much in just one simple year.

At what point did everything change? Did she change or just the life around her? That was simple, she knew she had changed along with everything else. A year ago, all she was thinking about was graduating fron High School and how much she was going to miss her friends, and her boyfriend of 1 ½ years when the end of summer came. Now, all she could think about was how much she did not want to leave California, her incredible friends, and her beyond amazing boyfriend of exactly 4 months! Although it felt like so much longer!

Well…now we're getting ahead of ourselves…let's go back to that day 1 year ago…

"I can't believe we graduate in a month! I'm SO excited!" Gabriella exclaimed.

"I know! I can't wait…but I can wait for August 18th…" Logan replied gloomily.

"August 18th… the day I leave." Gabriella concluded as she began to show a sudden interest in her feet.

"Can't you please just stay in North Dakota? _Why _do you have to go to California?" Logan questioned.

"Logan, you know why I have to. It's the school of my dreams and it is going to help me reach my goals. You understand that-right?" Gabriella tried to reason.

"I understand that. I just don't understand why you have to leave me." Logan said starring at her in an attempt to get her to look at him.

An exasperated Gabriella began to reply, "You know that's not why. I…"

At that exact moment the doorbell rang. Taking the chance to get out of her current conversation, Gabriella jumped out of her seat in the living room and ran to answer the door.

"Hi!" Gabriella exclaimed!

"Hey El! You ready for our study session?" Her best girl friend, Anna, questioned.

A boy standing behind Anna piped up, "Yeah, we have GOT to do well on that test! Otherwise you and I can kiss USC goodbye!"

"Oh right Luke, because we are in _such_ danger of failing!" Gabriella replied sarcastically. "Come on in guys!"

She was so happy to have her friends there. Sometimes she wished that she could hang out with that huge group of "popular" kids or that her friends liked to go out on the weekends, but they were good to her and that was what really mattered. She could always count on them, and she knew it.

"Earth to Ella…are we going to study?" Luke questioned.

Gabriella snapped back into reality, "Oh yeah, sorry guys. Let me just run upstairs and grab my book."

As she walked she began to reminisce…

The four of them had started out 9th grade as a simple study group for Chemistry. Although none of them needed it! They all just liked Chemistry, but thought that they would get teased if they admitted that. Soon their secrets were revealed. Through each other they gained confidence in showing their academic ability and by the middle of 10th grade the four of them had 8 handedly created and became their schools Academic Decathlon team.

She grabbed her Chemistry book and continued thinking...

In January of junior year Logan asked Gabriella to be his girlfriend. She said yes automatically, fearing that if she didn't she would hurt his feelings. Later, once she thought about it, she realized how good of a match they were. They were so much alike and he was one of her best friends.

As she walked back into the room and looked at her 3 friends, she thought…I just wish that there were more…_SPARKS_ when we are together.

---------------------------------------------------------------**Troy**----------------------------------------------------------------------

He glanced over at his roommates. He laughed as he saw the familiar site of the two of them sitting with an ipod in the middle of them, each with one headphone in, starring at a TV screen playing Mario Kart.

He turned his head to look out the window over the ocean. How could his life get any better? He thought about everything. Leaving home, making new friends, his new team, the late nights...and _her_.

His first year of college sure had thrown him for a loop. It was a loop he'd be willing to go through over & over again if it got him to this day everytime.

But once again we're getting ahead of ourselves. Let's go back to before that loop was even in sight.

"Troy! We're graduating in a month!!!" Chad yelled down the hallway.

"First off, i'm RIGHT next to you. Second off, I know dude! I'm so psyched to go to USC in the fall!" Troy returned.

"That school is _never_ gonna know what hit them when we get there!" Chad chimed.

**At the exact moment that conversation was taking place, Taylor McKessie and her friend Martin were walking past the two boys.**

"No way! I can NOT be going to the same college as him!" Taylor complained rather loudly.

"Um Taylor...I'm pretty sure that they are BOTH going there. Don't worry though, it's a huge school!" Her friend Martin tried to encourage her.

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_There's the first chapter! I hope you all like it! It's short, i know. Please read & review...I'll be trying to put up a second chapter soon. :-) Oh yeah...do you like that there's some new characters? Is there anything that you're already hoping to see happen? Let me know!_


	2. Colliding Into You

**-4 Months Later-**

-At USC-

-----------------With Gabriella------------------

Gabriella walked into a huge auditorium. As she looked around she quickly turned to the familiar guy on her left.

"Luke, I'm SO glad you decided to come here!" Gabriella exclaimed overwhelmed.

"Don't worry El, we'll be fine." He comforted her.

"I know, I just really want to get to my room. Having my whole life in my car and the back of your truck completely unorganized is making me feel sick." She explained quietly.

"Well first, it's _not_ unorganized, you know exactly what is in every one of those boxes and second, I really want to get to my room too!"

"Ok, well good!" All the sudden Gabriella's face lit up, "Look, over there! It says room assignments and keys! Let's go! We'll come back and take care of all this other stuff."

With that she grabbed his hand and they were off to get their keys.

-----------------With Taylor------------------

(Laurel is Taylor's Mom)

"Taylor hunnie, calm down!" Laurel exclaimed exasperated.

"Mom! How am I supposed to calm down?!? I have a million things to do! Ah! I'm so excited!"

"I know. Trust me! You only told me 500 times on the trip here."

"Sorry mom, I really didn't mean to it's just that..." Taylor began to explain.

"DON'T you say it Taylor Marie! Come on, let's go get your room key" mumbling to herself she added, "That way maybe you can tell someone _else_ how excited you are."

-----------------With Troy & Chad------------------

They were leaving the room assignments table, keys in hand.

"Room 326...we have another roommate?" Chad questioned.

"That's what the paper says" Troy replied.

Chad's face brightened as he added, "Maybe he's on the basketball team too!"

Troy simply rolled his eyes. He loved his friend, but he was pretty sure basketball was all he _ever_ thought about. "Yeah man, that'd be awesome. Come on, let's go find it."

"I'm all about that! There's a sign for the dorm. Let's go get our cars and head over."

The boys walked into the parking lot. Troy headed towards his small blue truck while Chad jumped into his Wildcat red Jeep Wrangler. They pulled up to the dorms, each grabbed a load of stuff and went to find their room. As they walked up toward their door they saw that it was already open. Chad turned the corner first.

"Hello?" He said into the air.

A boy came out of the bathroom. "Hi. I'm Luke. Are you Chad & Troy?"

"Yeah." Troy replied quickly, "Well, I'm Troy. He's Chad. Nice to meet you."

"You have a lot of boxes in here. Is there a basketball in one of them?" Chad questioned

"Um...no. Is there supposed to be?"

At that Troy laughed, "You'll have to excuse him. We're on the basketball team, but he thinks about basketball 24-7."

"Oh...ok. Well, I'm sorry guys, it was great to meet you, but I have to run. I told one of my friends that I'd help her move in."

"That's cool man," Chad said as he began to unpack what he had brought up. "Have fun, we'll catch you later."

"Hey, why don't you take my cell number and give us a call for dinner?" Troy asked just as Luke was about to leave.

"Sure. My friend will probably come with us too though."

The boys exchanged cell numbers and decided that they'd call each other in 2 hours to see when they could meet up for dinner.

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"Hi, is Gabriella here?" Luke asked a vibrant girl with black hair while she buzzed around the room.

The sound of a male voice behind her, made Taylor stop in her tracks. She turned around. "Oh, Hi! You must be Luke. Gabriella's in the other room but she told me you'd be…"

"Taylor, there is SO much stuff in our room already!" Gabriella burst out of the other room with a smile. "Oh, hi Luke!"

All three of them laughed at that.

"Hey El. I unloaded all my stuff out of my truck. Are you ready to bring your stuff up?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Oh, I can help!" Taylor chimed, "My mom's going to some parent thing and then back to the hotel for the night, so I have the whole night free!"

The three of them walked out of the room and headed to the entrance.

"I can't believe we ended up in the same dorm. This place is amazing too." Luke commented, "So Taylor, where are you from?"

"New Mexico! It's only…" Taylor started and the conversation continued on from there.

They all continued talking as they worked, Taylor constantly making them laugh. Finally, after 4 full trips, the rest of Gabriella's stuff was up in their room. They all plopped down onto a couch in the living room.

"Well I wonder where our third roommate is."

"I don't know, it'd be nice to meet her before dinner," Gabriella replied, "but we should probably try to unpack some of our stuff before she gets here. This place is packed with boxes."

"Completely agreed!"

"I can help you guys if you want," Luke offered. "I think I'll let my roommates get settled in before I unpack."

An hour later they found themselves back in the place they started.

"I'm tired" Gabriella stated with her head lying on the back of the couch and her eyes closed.

Taylor and Luke were in the same position, but could only groan in response.

"Hello?" A voice asked as the door behind them opened.

Gabriella and Taylor sprung to their feet with a sudden burst of energy. Taylor was, of course, the first to speak.

"HI!" She practically yelled as she hugged the skinny blonde girl in front of her. "You're our other roommate-right?"

"Yeah, I'm Lexie," the girl laughed. She glanced around the well arranged 3-person apartment, "Sorry I wasn't here to help you guys move in. I had soccer practice this afternoon."

"You already had a practice?" Luke, who had wondered over by then asked.

"_**A**_ practice?" Lexie laughed again, "We've had two-a-day's at camp for the past two weeks! All my stuff is down in storage though, because we couldn't move in until today. I've been living out of this thing." As she finished she pointed to the bag sitting on the floor next to her.

"Wow" was all the three of them, having never been in sports themselves, could think of to say.

All the sudden Luke looked at his watch. "Opps, I'm supposed to call my roommates in 15 minutes to go over to dinner. Do you guys want to come?"

"Sure!" Taylor and Gabriella replied together. They looked at each other with small smiles and laughed. They both were so happy that they were roommates, in just the few hours they had been together, they both already felt like they had been friends for years.

"Yeah, let me just jump in the shower real quick" Lexie called as she walked toward the bathroom with her yellow USC gym bag over her shoulder.

10 Minutes later the 4 of them were on their way to dinner. Luke had called Troy and Chad and they said they were still unpacking a few things and would meet them at the dinner hall.

"There's a big open table" Taylor exclaimed, "It's big enough for us 4 and your other two roommates!"

"Lex! Lexie, over here!" A whole table full of very toned, athletic looking girls were calling.

Lexie called over to them, but stayed with Taylor, Gabriella, and Luke, "Hey guys. I um…just met my roommates; I'm going to sit with them."

Gabriella and Taylor smiled to themselves. Both girls had secretly worried that their 3rd roommate would turn out to be a stuck up jock that didn't want anything to do with them and didn't care about anything but sports.

A few minutes after they sat down Luke put his hand up and waved.

Chad and Troy walked over to the table. Taylor's eyes practically bugged out of her head, but she quickly took a deep breath and rolled her eyes instead. Troy's jaw dropped. Chad simply stood there looking at Troy wondering what was wrong with him. Gabriella and Lexie were oblivious to it all, too absorbed in their conversation to have even looked up.

"Troy, Chad, this is Taylor…"

"Gabriella?!" Troy finally spoke.

This surprised everyone, especially Gabriella who finally looked up.

"Um…hi" She managed.

"You know him?" Luke asked calmly.

"You know her?!?" Chad questioned rather loudly. He didn't understand how Troy could possibly know someone he didn't.

Troy turned to Chad and speaking out of the corner of his mouth whispered, "She's that girl…that I told you about…from my ski trip over Christmas break…"

"Oh!" Chad said, his face lighting up. "So you play basketball-right?" Chad continued now turning to stare at Gabriella.

"Huh?" Gabriella and Luke both responded.

Taylor and Lexie had absolutely no clue what was going on. Lexie was just taking note of the three very attractive men she had met within the hour. Taylor was still in shock that her new, fun, roommate's good friend from home was roommates with the two boys she had hoped to avoid all of college.

Looking around at all the faces surrounding him in question and knowing he had no answeres, Troy tried to think on his feet,  
"Um…let's get dinner."

They all began to walk, heads swimming in thought about one thing or another. Except for Chad, who thought it all made fine sense.


	3. Dinner Together

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Special shouts to carito06, kae-thinks-of-u, butterflygoodbye, and xxyou're the music in mexx! Thanks so much you four. :-)_

_Thank you to everyone else who is reading! I really hope you all are liking it!_

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**-Chapter 4-**

-_Dinner!_-

Luke grabbed Gabriella's arm and pulled her backward. Taylor, not wanting to make small talk with, let alone actually talk to, Chad and Troy, slowed her step and joined Gabriella and Luke quite a few steps behind the others.

"What were they talking about?" Luke asked Gabriella.

"Well," Gabriella began, "When I went on vacation with my mom last winter, Troy and I…" She paused, choosing her words carefully, "We were both at this New Years Eve party. They were doing karaoke and Troy and I both got randomly pushed onto the stage. We both just..._sang_. Afterward we had to go find our mom's, but we gave each other our cell numbers before we did. He was going to call me so we could hang out again before vacation was over, but his family ended up leaving early, so when he called, we were both at home. I haven't seen him since. As for the other one…I have NO clue _what_ he was talking about."

"_Wait_," Taylor shot in, "Troy Bolton _**Sang**_?"

"Yeah, he did. He was really good too."

Taylor couldn't believe it. She glanced ahead of her and looked at Troy. No way. Not him. All he ever does is play basketball.

Now it was Luke's turn to talk, "So….you guys talked on the phone... a lot? Did Logan know?"

Gabriella laughed, "We talked twice, but the next time he called I missed his call and I just…never called him back."

What Luke didn't know couldn't hurt him-right? What Gabriella had left out was the _reason_ she never called Troy back. She knew they had a connection that night at the lodge and both times she to him on the phone, she had so much fun and simply loved talking to him so much, that a large pit in her stomach was begining to form because she knew she was betraying Logan.

Lexie was completely content walking between Chad Danforth and Troy Bolton. She had watched their signings on television and couldn't wait to watch them live, in action at her college on the basketball court, but to be friends with them…even better!

"So Lexie, are you all moved in?" Chad began the small talk.

"No, not at all! I had soccer practice this afternoon and we just got back from camp today. I've been living out of my gym bag."

"We know how that is-don't we Troy?"

"Uh huh" Troy answered uninterested. He couldn't get his mind off Gabriella. _Gabriella._ He glanced backward to look at her. She was here, at his college, and apparently friends with his roommate? He only talked to her 3 times, if you included the time they sang together. Man that was incredible. He had never felt anything like it. Then, when they talked on the phone, he had just never wanted to hang up. He could be so real when he talked to her. But then…she never called him back. Why hadn't she ever called back? He needed to know.

"Troy. Troy!" He snapped back to reality. "Are you going to dish your food, or just stare at it?" Chad was asking.

Troy turned to see Gabriella, Luke, and Taylor standing behind him, trays in hand waiting for him to go.

"Oh, sorry guys. I must have been…" He trailed off as he began to dish his food.

"It's ok. No big deal," Luke answered.

Then it hit him. Troy had just seen Taylor, but was so distracted by seeing Gabriella, he hadn't even realized it. She was from his High School. In all 4 of their years at East High they had never talked. She was one of Gabriella's roommates this year? Troy continued pondering all of his thoughts and finally concluded, with... this is going to be one long dinner.

As the six of them got back to the table they each took a seat. By this time the three girls were giggling and laughing about something the guys were completely clueless about. As they sat down at the round table, Lexie ended up being in between her roommates leaving open seats next to Gabriella and Taylor. Troy saw the open seat and quickly, yet nonchalantly sat down next to Gabriella. Luke followed suit sitting next to him, leaving the only open seat for Chad next to Taylor.

Awkward he thought. I've known her for four years and never said anything to her. She was always with those smart kids. She must be really dull, seriously, who doesn't play any sports?

"So...where is everyone from?" Lexie ventured looking around at the other college freshman.

"Well...I'm from North Dakota...A really small town that I'm pretty sure only Luke would have ever heard of!" Gabriella started off with a smile, "But it's down on the border, we live like 10 minutes from the North Dakota, South Dakota border."

"WOW, that's really far!"

"Yeah, but it wasn't bad...we drove out together in my truck and then Ella had her car shipped out." Luke added.

Everyone then looked at Troy as if to tell him to go next.

"Well...I'm from Albequerque New Mexico..."

"East Side!" Chad and Taylor both yelled in ghetto voices while forming their fingers in the shapes of "E's" and throwing them into the air. They both looked at each other and turned slightly red looking away.

Everyone else laughed.

"Well, I'm guessing you're all from the same area and know each other?" Lexie asked in more of an assumptive voice.

Taylor put her head down just slightly and Chad looked off into the sky. Neither could believe what just happened. How could they explain that they went to the same school, but didn't really know each other at all. They both thought it would make them look stupid if they dared to explain.

Troy laughed at their expressions and took care of the question, "Yeah, we all actually went to High School together."

Taylor smiled. Chad suddenly looked more relaxed and like himself. Troy's simple words had put them at ease, even if they still didn't want anything to do with each other.

"What about you Lexie?" Gabriealla turned to her roommate.

"Oh, I'm actually from right here in California! Huntington Beach. It's a little less than an hour away."

"That's so cool!" Chad commented excitedly. "I love this state already, no wonder you didn't want to leave!"

"I hope I never have to leave my California," Lexie smiled to the group, "You guys should all come down to my house sometime, it's right on the beach!"

"Ok, I'm officially jealous!" Taylor popped up in her seat with a huge smile forming on her face.

"Me too!" Gabriella squealed, "I feel a roommate trip coming on!"

"I do believe we were invited too," Troy said playfully.

"Yeah! You can't leave us out!" Chad helped Troy defend the boys.

"Oh please, you guys will be spending all of your time playing basketball, you probably couldn't even take a trip." Taylor countered.

"Well, basketball _is_ really important, but..." Chad thought to himself for a moment as if considering what to add to his comment, "We could always play at her house!" He finally finished, proud of himself for thinking of the idea and excited at the prospect of it happening.

"Oh great, a whole weekend of watching you two play basketball...I never thought I'd get the chance..." Taylor muttered under her breath. Unfortunately for her, Chad heard her.

"Excuse me?!" He asked getting angry.

Troy gave Chad a specific face that yelled "knock it off!" He hadn't heard Taylor's last comment, but didn't want anyone to get embarrased. Luke had made up his mind to stay out of the whole conversation, he wasn't going to be playing any basketball, but he was in for a trip to Lexie's house! Gabriella stiffled a laugh. Everyone else seemed to be oblivious to how humorous their banter was.

"Anyway," Troy began sternly, "Thanks for the invitation Lexie." With that he leaned over to Gabriella and whispered, "Way to start trouble!"

"I was just joking!" She defended herself, only speaking to him.

He looked sideways at her and smiled as if to tell her he was too.

The group continued talking, getting to know each other, and at times arguing throughout all of their dinner. Once they had each finished they all stood up and walked out of the dining hall and into the fresh air together.

"Hey, they're showing a movie on a huge screen outside tonight. Are you guys going to go?" Chad asked everyone.

"Yeah, I definitely want to go" Luke answered.

"Me too!" Lexie chimed.

A hesitant Taylor looked at the rest of the gang, "Yeah, I actuallly really wanted to go," She sighed. As much as she didn't want Chad to think she wanted to hang out with him, she simply couldn't pass up Pirates 3 and if she didn't go with them, she would probably end up going alone.

"Actually, I kind of wanted to check out the campus." Gabriella put in, a hint of hopefullness that someone would change their mind and want to go with her.

Troy saw his chance to finally talk to Gabriella alone. "I did too!" He piped up a little too quickly from the end of the line they had formed while walking to a few benches outside.

"Ok, well the movie starts in 45 minutes, so we should probably head over to get good seats."

"Yeah, Taylor's right," Lexie agree, "And if it's ok with you guys, I'd like to stop by the dorm and grab a blanket to sit on. I have a small one in our room."

"That's a really good idea. Let's go." Luke stated as he began to turn and leave where they had ended up standing in a small circle.

The other three movie goers followed his lead and the four of them strolled away leaving Troy and Gabriella standing awkwardly alone.

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_Yeay! Hope ya'll liked this one! I tried to bring it to you quicker this time! What do you think is going to happen:-) Thanks again for reading._


	4. Questions and Answers?

_I don't own HSM, Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor. Here's the next one! Sorry it took me longer. I'm trying!  
_

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**-Chapter 5-  
**

**-Questions and...Answers?-**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

**_---------------------------__With Troy and Gabriella---------------------------_**

Troy looked at Gabriella, shoved his hands into his pockets and began, "So, where do you want to go?"

"Oh," Gabriella looked up at him. "Um, I wanted to check out the scenery and what kind of stuff there is to do."

"We could head towards the middle of campus, stop along the way and decide from there." Troy suggested, still looking at her as though she may turn and bolt away from him at any moment.

"Sounds good to me," Gabriella forced a smile, wondering what in the world they were going to talk about.

"Hey, I was just wondering, not that it was a big deal or anything," Troy was hoping that he sounded nonchalant even though his stomach was doing flips, "Why didn't you return my call a few months ago?"

Apparently, Gabriella thought, we are going to talk about that. She yawned and covered her mouth trying to buy herself more time. Think Gabriella, think! She thought silently to herself.

"Oh, I'm really sorry about that. I had gone over on my minutes for my phone the month before and the bill had come that day. My mom said no more calls except to her for a month."

"You could have called me then." He was really hoping that he didn't sound as desperate as he felt. What is wrong with me, he wondered to himself, I never get nervous around girls.

"I know, I just felt like a jerk because it had been so long and I figured we'd never see each other again. So I decided not to. I'm sorry."

Troy who had been looking at the ground was now smiling. Of course there was a reason. "It's ok, no harm, no foul. I didn't think we'd ever see each other again either."

"Now it's my turn to ask a question!" Gabriella smiled mischievously.

"Uh-oh" Troy looked over at her, "Why does that make me nervous?" They laughed together for a few seconds before Gabriella continued.

"Well…I was _just_ wondering why your friend Chad asked me if I played basketball."

Troy's eyes grew hue at the question. Crap he thought, he had forgotten about that! Man he wished Gabriella would have too.

"Well?"

"Gabs…do you remember the first time we talked on the phone? When I told you that one of the reasons singing was so much fun was because it was so unlike me, so…something people could never imagine me doing?"

"Yeah." Gabriella answered in more of a question than an answer.

"Well, Chad is one of those people. If I would have told him I met you singing, he would have slapped me in the back of the head and said, 'Get real! Like I would ever believe that _you_ could sing.' Then he would have proceeded to throw it into every conversation we had, somehow or another, for the next week."

"So you told him we met playing basketball." She finished slowly for him.

"Yeah," Troy sighed.

"Well, I've never actually been on a basketball team…or to a real game…"

Troy shot Gabriella a look of disbelief and mumble "This is going to be interesting."

"But I have shot around some with my older brother!" She smiled at him.

She's so beautiful Troy thought to himself, "Don't worry about it, Chad will probably ask you a ton of questions about basketball, it's his favorite topic, but…ya know what, I'll just take care of Chad, you don't worry."

They laughed together and continued walking through their new campus. As they were walking a song began to play…

_Its up to me .. Its up to me  
And I'm still falling  
Its up to me .. its up to me  
And I'm still calling_

_Its up to me  
Its up to me  
Its up to me and I'm still hoping  
Its up to me for you to hold me  
Its up to me to let you go  
Its up to me  
But for all you know  
I'm already gone_

"Gabriella, you're pockets ringing."

"Oh! Thanks" Gabriella looked down and grabbed her phone wondering how she had ignored it. She glanced at her caller ID. Uh-oh she thought.

"Hi!" She answered the phone in her cheeriest voice.

"I'm sorry ... We have been busy since we got here ... No, he went to a movie ... Yeah, they're both great. One plays soccer, and the other is a pre-med major! ... I miss you too." Gabriella put her head down and sighed, she did miss Logan, but this was her first night at college and she didn't want to be sad. Plus she was with Troy and she didn't want to be rude.

"Hey, I'm out right now, why don't I call you a little later? … Ok, sounds good….By Log…Love you too" She closed her phone and looked at Troy in anticipation, she could tell by his face that he had a question.

"Was that a Five Times August song on your phone?"

_ (If you haven't heard 5X's August…look him up! The songs are amazing. Gabriella's ring tone is a song  
called "Up to Me")_

"Yeah! You've heard him?"

"Yeah! He played at this little café when I was…"

"On vacation last winter!" Gabriella finished for him. They looked at each other and laughed.

"I can't believe you were there too!"

"Troy, I hate to break it to you, but we already knew that we were on the same vacation." Gabriella said in a teasing voice.

"I mean, there, at the café…you know what I mean." Troy gave up. He glanced ahead of them and his eyes enlarged once more as he saw a sign, "Gabs, look! That smoothie lounge is having a karaoke night."

Gabriella looked at him as her smile grew.

Troy grabbed her hand without thinking about it and pulled her with him, "Come on, let's check it out…just for kicks." He winked back at her as they half ran to the smoothie lounge.

**_--------------------------------After the movie (almost 3 hours later) --------------------------------------_**

"Oh my word, I LOVE that movie" A jumping Taylor bubbled.

"Me too" Chad practically yelled, he put his hand up to his hair and pretended to pull something out, "My peanut." He exclaimed tilting his head sideways.

All four of them laughed.

"Chad, you sounded too much like him right there!" Lexie finally managed between laughs.

As they walked into the building Chad and Luke went to one elevator and Taylor and Lexie walked to the other.

"Goodnight girls, I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow. Tell Ella I'll call her tomorrow."

"Will do!"

"Ditto!" Chad yelled, "Well, except for the whole calling Ella thing…that'd just be weird."

As a laughing Taylor and Lexie stepped onto the elevator they continued talking.

"I bet Gabriella and Troy came back forever ago." Lexie thought aloud.

"Yeah, they probably got bored pretty fast. Good thing we're on our way up to liven up her night!"

The girls laughed as Taylor unlocked the door.

"Gabi, we're back!" She shouted.

There was no answer. Taylor went over to the bedroom door and knocked.

"Gabriella, are you in there?" After a few seconds she turned back to Lexie, "She's not."

"I wonder if she just went for a walk." Lexie's face looked more panicked than her voice let on, "I can't believe we didn't think to exchange numbers."

"Me either. I'm kind of worried, I know it's a college campus, but it's USC. A lot could happen"

The two girls sat together in their new living room talking, and both worrying about what possibly could have happened to their other roommate.


	5. Those Late College Nights

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_I've been meaning to give you visuals of Luke & Lexie too! Sorry I forgot. I put links in my profile to them! Let me know if that's how you pictured them!_

_I hope you enjoy this one :-) Thanks again for all of the reviews, I really appreciate them!_

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**-Chapter Six- **

**-Those Late College Nights- **

Chad and Luke walked into their room. They looked at each other and glanced at the clock, which already read 1:15am.

"Well, I'm going to hit the sack" Luke offered beginning to walk towards his own bedroom. I hope I don't always feel this awkward when it's just me and Chad he thought to himself.

"Yeah, me too." Chad put in, "We have to get up pretty early tomorrow for all of those meetings and stuff. Do you want to go down to breakfast together?"

Luke was glad that Chad was talkative; he seemed to have a knack at making people feel comfortable. "Yeah, what time do you want to figure on leaving?"

"Let's just say 9, I'll let Troy know, I'm sure he'll want to go down with us," Chad answered as he opened the door to the room that he and Troy were sharing, "Night Man"

"Night" Luke walked into his room that was still in boxes and bins. He knew he had a long night of unpacking ahead of him and was glad that Chad had been tired too.

As Chad closed his door behind him he looked around the room that he and Troy would be sharing for the school year. The room was small because they had their living room and kitchen, but together they had made it look amazing. Posters of some of the best basketball players hung around their room donning College and NBA jerseys. They also had two pieces of USC garb on the walls along with a poster of the East High Wildcats after they had won their second state championship in a row. After looking around the room he realized something was missing…Troy. Chad pulled out his cell phone to call his best friend. If that boy went to shoot in our new gym without me, I'm going to be so mad he thought to himself as he easily pushed his speed dial button to cal Troy.

"Chad?" Troy answered in a question.

"Yeah it's me, ya know, you're best friend, teammate, and roommate. We've been at college for a day and you forgot about me?"

"Shut up Chad," Troy laughed into the phone, "What's up?"

"Oh, we just got back from the movie and you weren't here. Where are you?"

"Still walking around with Gabriella." Troy answered as if it were no big deal.

"_Still_" Chad repeated shocked, "You've been walking for almost 3 and ½ hours!"

"Sorry…didn't know I wasn't allowed" Troy answered back sarcastically.

"Well, are you on your way back? I'm going to bed soon and I don't want to get deep into my beauty sleep and then have you come wake me up!" Chad explained acting as if he was exasperated.

"You would say beauty sleep Chad. We'll be back in soon. No worries."

"Alright well, me and Luke figured we'd go down to breakfast around 9 tomorrow morning. You can let Gabi know incase her and the other girls want to come down."

"K, thanks Chad, bye"

"Alright, alright, bye!"

Troy hung up his phone and looked at a laughing Gabriella. They had left the Smoothie Lounge about an hour ago and had just been walking around campus talking again.

"And what's so funny over there?" He questioned.

"Oh nothing…Your friend talks really loud though, I could hear everything he was saying." Gabriella looked up at him while they continued walking.

"I know, that's just Chad, you get used to it. So," Troy began, changing the subject abruptly, "Next time we go, we're singing. That's right, I said it, and you don't have a choice. Well-unless there are people we know in there, then no way!"

"Troooy" Gabriella said in a pleading voice, "I loved singing on New Years, but I don't know if I could do it on purpose. And…Next time?" She asked slightly tilting her head while one eyebrow crept higher than the other.

"Come on Gabs, you know you want to! We didn't even sing tonight and it was a blast! I say we make it our Thursday night ritual. We can get away from everything - the school work, sports, our roommates, anything that's bothering us – and just go enjoy the music. And" he added looking down at her with the same look she had given him, "we can enjoy singing together for other peoples enjoyment." Troy finished with a smug look on his face, he knew he had won.

How am I supposed to argue with that, Gabriella thought to herself before responding, "Alright, but I'm not making any promises about us singing," She finally answered with a smile.

The two arrived to their dorms and silently started racing to the elevator. Troy pushed the button and grinned childishly.

"Beat you" He stated proudly.

"I wasn't racing." Gabriella said with a laugh.

The elevator stopped at Gabriella's floor and she stepped out.

"Night" She shouted as she walked.

All the sudden Troy's head popped out of the elevator, "Oh! Gabriella" She turned around with her key in her door, "I forgot to tell you, Chad said him and Luke were planning on going to breakfast at 9, he said to let you know so that the three of you could meet us down there if you wanted to."

"Sounds good! I'll let Taylor and Lexie know" With that she stepped into her apartment. She jumped when Taylor and Lexie both yelled her name.

"Gabriella! We have been so worried!" Taylor started with huge eyes.

"Yeah, even I was, and I don't get worried," Lexie added.

"I'm sorry" Gabriella said sincerely looking at the two girls she had just met that day, "You knew I went with Troy."

"You were with him this whole time?" Taylor asked her, her voice full of amazement.

"Yeah"

"I think we should exchange cell numbers _now_ so that we don't have to worry anymore."

"Lex is right, but I really am sorry you guys."

All three girls pulled out their phones. When Gabriella looked at hers a look of horror came over her face.

"Gabi, are you ok?" Lexie asked with concern.

"Oh no! I put my phone on silent because we walked into this place that people were singing and I have four missed calls and two texts. Probably all from Logan" She mumbled the last part.

"Logan?" Lexie and Taylor asked together.

"Yeah, he's my boyfriend. He called when we first left and I told him I would call him later because I didn't want to be rude. I have to go call him."

"Ok, we'll both call you quick and you can save the numbers."

Gabriella walked into her and Taylor's bedroom with her head down. My first night and I'm spending it alone in my room on the phone instead of getting to know my roommates, fun, she thought to herself as she dialed.

(**Logan, **_Gabriella_)

"**Gabriella! Finally!"**

"_Hey Log, I'm really sorry. I put my phone on silent because we went into this one place and I just forgot."_

"**I've been so worried. I called Luke because I figured that he would be with you, but he didn't know where you were."**

"_Yeah, I wasn't with him."_

"**Who were you with?"**

"_Just another friend" _ She answered not wanting to tell her boyfriend she had been with another guy…just the two of them all night. That was when she remembered that Troy had mentioned breakfast.

Gabriella popped her head back into the living room area. "Hey girls, I forgot to tell you, the guys said that they're going to breakfast at 9 and they wanted to make sure we knew so we could meet them."

Lexie was obviously happy with the news, "That's so nice of them!"

Taylor slightly rolled her eyes, was she really going to hang out with Chad Danforth and Troy Bolton _again_?

"I know, that's what I thought too, so we'll go then." Gabriella had continued.

"Yep!" Lexie piped.

Taylor looked from one roommate to the other, they had just decided for her that she was. Oh well, at least the guys seemed nice for now and I'll have these two…and Luke. Ok, I'll go.

"Yeah, I'll go." She finally said out loud.

Lexie looked at her with a face of confusion. Gabriella had already gone back into her room and Lexie had just asked Taylor a completely different question.

"Oh, sorry…I was still thinking about the last conversation."

Lexie laughed, "I kinda figured. I'm glad you'll go though" After a few seconds of silence she continued, "I can't believe my stuff is still down in storage, I really have to bring it up tomorrow, then this place will feel like home"

"Definitely!" Taylor agreed. "Well, if we're going to get up for breakfast tomorrow we should get to bed. I think Gabriella's off the phone too."

The two girls both slowly removed themselves from the couch and walked to their separate rooms. As all of the new USC freshman lay in bed, each had their own separate thoughts. Lexie went to bed wondering if she would continue to get along with her roommates and thinking about how she would manage all of the new things to do, plus soccer, plus school work.

Luke laid in bed content. He had one of his best friends a few floors below, had met, hung out with, and gotten along with both of her roommates, and his roommates both seemed like pretty nice guys, even if they were insanely into sports.

Chad let his mind wonder back to his high school basketball team and wondered what his first college practice would be like. He allowed himself to think about how different it all would be, but fell asleep convinced that as long as he had Troy by his side, he could take on anything.

Gabriella was lying in bed, but felt anything but tired. She had had a great night, gotten to know her roommates, had a fun time with Troy, an argument with Logan, and then made up with him. Who knew college would be so tricky she thought as her brain finally began to rest.

Taylor lay in her bed, with one of her new roommates only feet away. She thought about how crazy her day had been. She realized that college would be nothing like High School, but was weary of letting she feel too comfortable around Troy Bolton and Chad Danforth. Both seemed nice today, but she'd known them long before today and she didn't think she would ever get along with them.

Troy fell asleep almost instantly. He had a smile on his face and was only recalling the time he had spent with Gabriella.

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	6. Breakfast, Shopping, and a Surprise

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Thanks for all the reviews! _

_PS, Rizmu, I haven't read other stories where she dated a Logan...weird! lol, that wasn't on purpose._

_Enjoy:-)  
_

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**-Chapter 7- **

_Breakfast, Shopping, and ..._**  
**

All three of the girls woke up rather early the next morning (Friday), considering how late they had been up the night before. All three came stumbling out of the bedrooms, looked at each other, and burst out laughing.

"Hello College," Taylor stated.

"Oh my gosh Gabi, I don't even know how you can see me…you're eyes are hardly even open"

"Gabi?" Gabriella asked groggily, she had never been called that. Everyone at home called her Ella or…El, which was really just short for Ella. Then again Troy had called her Gabs last night, which he had done on the phone once, but besides that, it was a first too.

"Gabriella, are you mad at me?" A tense, yet sleepy, Lexie was now asking.

Opps, Gabriella thought, she always did that, got caught up in her own thoughts, started ignoring someone and then somebody thought she was either a snob or that she was mad at them…crap! I'm doing it again, "No, no! Sorry Lexie, it's just that no one has ever called me that before, but I don't mind, I kind of like it."

"Ok good!" Lexie's face brightened a bit despite her drooping eyes, "I say we all go get changed, we're supposed to go to breakfast in half an hour!"

"Ditto" Taylor called as she turned to go back into the room that she and Gabi were sharing.

Luke walked out of his room at 8:45 dressed in blue Adidas sport shorts and a grey t-shirt. Chad was already sitting at the bar which connected their kitchen and living room. He was studying something, as for what, Luke had no clue, they hadn't even started classes yet.

"Morning man!" Chad greeted him energetically.

"Morning Chad. What are you studying?"

"Oh, our new playbook. We got them yesterday at orientation from our coach and our first open gym is today so I need to have a few of them memorized."

"_Today?!?_" Luke asked astonished, "We just got here."

Chad laughed, "Sports don't care how long you've had to settle in, they only care how hard you've worked."

After a few seconds of silence he added, "You beat Troy to wake up though. Man that boy knows how to sleep. He was probably up really late last night trying to learn these plays…"

"Chad, why do you always have to talk about me behind my back?" Troy entered the room with his sarcastic remark, "Guys, you do know we have our own kitchen right here…why did you want to go to breakfast?"

"One," Chad started, "It's completely free this whole week…"

"And two," Luke finished, "Our kitchen is completely void of all food."

"Alright, points taken. We better head out then."

As the boys walked toward the door they began discussing what the day was going to be like.

Chad opened the door and turned to Troy, "Oh yeah, did you tell Gabriella about breakfast and to let the other girls know?"

"Yeah Chad, I did…why do you ask?" Troy looked at him with a mischievous grin.

The boys continued their conversation as they walked to the main USC cafeteria that was being used for orientation weekend.

The girls all met back in their living room a few minutes before nine looking much more awake. Lexie was dressed head to toe in her athletic gear with her gym bag over her shoulder. Gabriella had opted for jeans and a solid blue tank-top (with matching flip-flops of course!). Taylor came out in a dark yellow skirt with a white tank-top to match.

"Shall we?" Taylor asked.

"But of course!" Gabriella put in with a giggle as they headed for the door.

As the girls entered the cafeteria they looked around for Luke, Chad, and Troy. Chad had put his hand in the air and was waving at them. The girls all smiled and waved and then Gabriella motioned that they were going to go get their food.

"They are so nice!" Lexie gushed, "Not to mention easy on the eyes!"

Taylor and Gabriella laughed; Lexie hadn't made many comments like that yet.

After laughing Taylor rolled her eyes and added, "We'll see" under her breath, which earned confusing looks from Gabriella and Lexie.

After getting their breakfast the three giggling roommates began to make their way through the crowd back to where they had seen the guys. As they approached the table, only feet away, a group of six girls all wearing matching red shorts with USC written across the butt and yellow tank-tops which read "USC Cheerleading" across the front walked briskly past them straight to the three boys.

"Troy Bolton and Chad Danforth!" The girl in the front yelled, "I can't believe I am just seeing you guys now! Where on earth have you been hiding?"

Troy and Chad shot each other questioning looks.

"Well…ya know…we just got here yesterday, but uh, we were around. I can't believe we haven't seen you either." He replied in a hesitant, confused voice.

The girl looked shocked, "Ah! You know who I am?! I'm so honored. Well, I don't know you yet," She turned to Luke and shot out her hand, "I'm Brooke!" And then turning to the girls behind her she added, while pointing to each of them, "This is Amber, Kristin, Lauren, Rachel, and Brittany. You must be on the basketball team too!"

As she had began talking Lexie, Gabriella, and Taylor had walked the rest of the way up to the table and were now standing right next to the group of cheerleaders.

"No…I'm just their roommate."

"Oh," She responded slightly disgusted, and then added in a more perky voice, "Well what sport do you play then?"

"None," He replied as if she was stupid.

"Well, Troy, Chad, thanks for saving us seats," She gestured towards the open chairs, completely ignoring the fact that the other three girls were standing there, "We'll need three more chairs though, because there's six of us."

"Actually…" Troy tried glancing up at Gabriella, "We were…" He didn't get to finish because he was cut off by one of the other girls.

"You only wanted three of us to sit here?" It was Kristin who spoke up, "Of course, Lauren, Rachel, Brittany, you can go somewhere else."

The three roommates began to walk away from the table.

"Typical," Taylor muttered once they were facing the other direction, "exactly how it should be."

"What do you mean?" Lexie asked cautiously.

"I mean, of course Troy and Chad would sit with cheerleaders over us. That's how it's always been."

As the girls walked away in conversation the three boys looked after them with pleading faces.

Luke spoke up first, "Actually, one of you can take my seat, I was going to go sit with some other friends anyway."

Lauren quickly jumped into his seat. Troy and Chad both shot him pleading looks and Troy mouthed "Help me!" with his hand covering his face so that the cheerleaders couldn't see it.

Luke laughed at his roommates but quickly added, "Oh yeah, guys don't forget that we were going to run to that little store place before your practice. So we're going to eat fast and I'll meet you right out front in 10 minutes?"

"YES!" Troy and Chad yelled together, voices full of relief.

Luke laughed as he strode over to the three girls.

Ten minutes later Troy and Chad finally got to leave their breakfast table and went outside to find Luke and the three girls.

As they walked Chad spoke in a serious tone (for him), "Troy…is that what our high school friends were like?"

"I don't know Chad…those girls were…annoying and obnoxious and…"

"Mean" Chad finished for him, "I mean, It's not like I was excited to eat with Taylor, Lexie, and Gabriella, but those girls didn't even acknowledge that they were standing there, and we _had_ invited them to meet us here." He finished speaking as they came up to the other four sitting on the same benches they had the night before.

"Thanks for saving us back there," Troy looked at Luke with a face full of thankfulness.

"Seriously" Chad added, "I don't think I could have taken another minute with those girls."

Taylor looked taken aback by the comments, but Gabriella and Lexie just laughed.

"So now we really do have some time before practice, do you guys want to run over to the store and buy some food for our apartment?"

"Oh yeah! We need to buy food too!" Taylor looked surprised, "I can't believe we forgot about food!"

The guys laughed and Chad added, "That's what you have us for, guys _never_ forget about food!"

"I think all six of us would fit in my jeep, and the food should fit in the back," Lexie offered.

They all piled into her silver Jeep Cherokee and headed for the store. After about thirty minutes of walking around, joking around, and talking the six of them got in line, Chad pushing a full cart and Luke pushing a half full one for the guys and Gabriella pushing the girls.

"Guys, do you honestly need all that food?"

"Um, Lexie…we're guys…remember? We've been over this?" Chad answered as if it were obvious.

Everyone else laughed.

"Yeah, we're hungry!" Troy helped defend them.

"Who knew shopping could be so fun," Gabriella pondered to no one in particular.

"Really…we should have offered to shop for our parents back in South Dakota" Luke joked back.

Once back at school they all unloaded their stuff and went their separate ways. Troy and Chad had basketball; Taylor, Gabriella, and Luke had meetings about their academic scholarships; and Lexie was going to meet her parents one last time before they left for home.

A few hours later Lexie walked into her apartment with a few tears still streaming down her face. As she opened the door she heard the voices of her roommates and then felt their stares turn to her.

"Lexie what's wrong?" Gabriella asked as both her and Taylor engulfed Lexie in a hug. They led her to the couch.

Once she sat down she looked at the two girls she had met just yesterday and the true concern on their faces and silently thanked God that she had gotten them as roommates.

"It's just…there's so much going on! I just had to say bye to my parents and I know that I'm not that far from home, but I'm stressed with soccer, and I want to get to know you guys, and I haven't even brought my stuff up from storage yet, but I can't right now because I have to go get changed and go down to the field for practice, and…all I really want to do is hang out and get settled in." Her face was formed in a deep frown as tears continued to caress her checks.

The girls once again pulled her in for a hug.

"Lexie it's going to be ok. You _will_ get to know us; you already _are_ getting to know us. We'll make sure that you get to bring your stuff up from storage, it must be hard that you don't have everything up here yet." Taylor tried to encourage.

"Yeah, and you'll see your parents really soon - we're all going to your house," Gabriella added.

"Thanks guys, I really need to go get changed for practice though. I don't know what time I'll be back, but if you guys need to go for a meal without me, don't worry about it." She was slowly standing up from the couch and wiping her tears as she walked toward her bedroom door.

"We have got to do something!" Taylor turned to Gabriella.

"I think I know just the thing Tay," Gabriella's face formed into a small grin.

After Lexie left Gabriella and Taylor made their way down to Luke's room.

He opened the door, "Hey guys, I didn't know you were coming down."

"Luke, we need your help" Gabriella stated instead of asking.

As that was being said Chad and Troy swung the door the rest of the way open.

"Help? Help with what? We'll help!" Chad rushed without having a clue what was going on.

"Great…here's what we're going to do…"

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_There ya go:-) _


	7. Girls Have a Lot of Stuff

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Here's the next chapter! Sorry about the cliffhanger :-P _

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**-Chapter 8-**

_-Girls Have a Lot of Stuff- _

"Ok," Gabriella began as the boys led the way into their living room, "Lexie is really stressed out right now. All of her stuff is still down in storage downstairs and she feels like she isn't going to have any time to get to know us."

"Ok?" Troy was still confused as to what this had to do with them.

"Well, since you two just offered to help we can make it even better!" Gabriella smiled over at Taylor who was wearing a huge grin on her face, "We got Lexie to leave the key to her storage thing on the counter so that 'all of us would be reminded that she had to do it.'" Gabriella made hand quotes as she quoted herself, "We also have a bunch of pictures from when we were just at the store and from when you guys were at the movie last night. Taylor and Luke are going to run to a store close by and print out the pictures…you two," She turned to Troy and Chad, "Are going to come with me and we're going to take her stuff from the storage up to our apartment for her!"

"Wait…why do we have to do the hard work?" Chad questioned indignant.

"Luke's really good at photography; I thought he could help Taylor make the pictures look even cooler." Gabriella explained.

Chad shot Luke a look of jealousy, "Why do you get to be the one she knew before?"

They all laughed as they began to stand up. Taylor and Luke headed for the parking lot while Troy and Chad followed Gabriella to Lexie's storage.

"Ok guys…let's start!" Gabriella turned to their shocked faces apprehensively.

"Gabi, this is a lot of stuff." Troy stated in awe.

"Have no fear…Chad is…ok, that was going to be stupid. Anyway, I have an idea!"

At that Chad wiped out his phone.

With it up to his ear he began to speak, "Cam … yeah, Chad. … We need your help, are you still with the other guys? … Ok, good! … Meet us downstairs … thanks man. Bye!"

He closed his phone and looked at Gabriella and Troy with a wide grin.

"No need to do this all by ourselves, that's what teammates are for! The other freshman guys are on their way down, they'll help us!"

"Chad you're a genius!" A smiling Gabriella gushed.

Chad's chest puffed out instinctively, "I know…I've been told."

Troy rolled his eyes at his best friend and gave Gabriella a look as he shook his head.

Three other guys game bounding down the stairs and Gabriella, Troy, and Chad all turned.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

"Hey Cam," Troy began, "This is Gabriella. Gabriella, this is Cameron, Dylan, and Scott."

"Nice to meet you," Gabriella said sweetly, "I really appreciate you doing this without even knowing me or my roommate."

With that Chad explained what they were doing and the six of them got to work.

On the second load Gabriella's phone started to beep for the 20th time. She groaned loudly as she ignored it.

"Gabriella, are you ok?" Troy asked softly

Chad came barreling from behind them, but stopped suddenly before he ran into them.  
"Yeah." She muttered.

"Well why did you make that noise then?" Chad asked confused, "I heard you all the way down the hall"

Gabriella laughed slightly embarrassed, "Sorry…It's just that my boyfriend keeps texting me, I already told him that I was busy."

Chad shot Troy a look from behind Gabriella and mouthed, "_Boyfriend?_"

Troy just nodded his head and the three of them picked up their pace to catch up with the other boys.

After four full loads for all of them all of the boxes were upstairs in the girl's apartment. Just as the five boys were collapsing on the couches (Gabriella getting water for each of them), Taylor and Luke walked in.

"Gabi, you have to see these pictures, they turned out so good!" Taylor squealed as they walked through the door. As the words were escaping her mouth she realized the five guys on the couches. Her head tilted slightly to the side as she said, "Hi, I'm Taylor."

"Taylor, Luke, this is Cameron, Dylan, and Scott," Chad began as they walked over to them, "They're on our basketball team," He pointed at Luke and added, "That's Luke."

Everyone started talking and Gabriella came over with the drinks.

"Ok, Tay, I really want to see those pictures!"

"Oh yeah!" Taylor exclaimed as her face brightened even more.

Out of the shopping bag she pulled a whole stack of pictures, some of different sizes. There was blown up pictures consisting of a close up of Taylor, Lexie, Chad, and Luke from the night before, a black and white of the three girls standing together, and one of all three guys in shopping carts from the store. Many more random pictures from the short time they had spent together were in the stack. They ranged from smiling faces, to making weird faces, to pretending to kiss the camera, to candid pictures where no one was paying attention to the camera at all.

"Guys, these are really good." Troy put in as he sat next to Gabriella looking at them.

"So did you all know each other before?" Cameron asked as he and his roommates/teammates were having their turn looking at the pictures.

The other five laughed, "No, we just met yesterday," Gabriella giggled, "Well kind of anyway."

The boys on the couch were still confused so they began to explain the various connections and how they had come to hang out.

Once they had all finished looking at the pictures, Taylor stood up.

"Hey, I think we should start unpacking some of Lexie's stuff. Everything's labeled," She was looking at Gabriella, and then turned and glanced at each of the guys, "If you guys want to stay and hang out you're more than welcome to." She spoke with both sincerity and excitement in her voice.

"I'm all about helping." Chad returned.

The other guys nodded and grunted in agreement. With that they began to open some of Lexie's boxes, set up her bedroom, and add her stuff to their living room and kitchen.

"Man girls have a lot of stuff" Scott commented aloud to no one in particular.

"I couldn't agree more" Dylan stated as he stopped next to Scott to grab another drink of water.

"Hey, we can't help it, they're necessities," Taylor defended.

"Necessities?" Dylan started, "No, necessities would be sheets, toothbrush, a few pairs of shorts, a few t-shirts, one pair of jeans, and a basketball."

Scott nodded in agreement as if what Dylan said couldn't be truer.

Taylor rolled her eyes as she shook her head and stated, "A basketball…really?"

"Yes!" They answered together.

With that all three of them started laughing. They stood and talked for a minute longer and when Taylor turned to start working again she added, "And thanks a lot for your help, we really wouldn't have been able to get all this done for Lexie without you guys."

Once they were done everything looked amazing. They had made Lexie's bed, Luke had set up her computer, the guys had moved the furniture around to the way Lexie had described that she wanted to do it to Gabriella and Taylor, her make-up and shower products were neatly in the bathroom (done by Taylor and Gabriella together of course), and all of the books, movies, and CD's that she had brought were sitting neatly on a bookshelf with some picture frames that she had brought from home setting on top. They had also added some of her touches to the living room and kitchen.

"Last touch, the pictures." Gabriella stated as they all had reconvened into a circle.

They all shook their heads and began hanging the pictures up. The picture of the three girls and the picture of the three guys hung on the wall above the television, the picture of Taylor, Lexie, Chad, and Luke hung in the kitchen, a few had been put on the apartment door, and the rest had been put around the living room, on the bedroom doors, or inside one of the bedrooms.

The seven of them all looked around the apartment in content.

"This looks amazing." Taylor stated into the air.

"I couldn't agree more!" Gabriella returned, her face turning from awe to excitement, "Now we need to get some pictures with Scotty, Cam, and Dylan," She added to the guys she had gotten to know over the last few hours.

"Let's order some pizza," Taylor suggested, "When Lexie gets back it'll be around dinner time and the other thing she mentioned was that she wants to get to know us and she wants to hang out."

Everyone agreed and Taylor picked up the phone to call for pizza. As she was hanging up she heard their apartment door open.

Lexie walked in and began to notice her things around the apartment. Her face looked shocked as she glanced toward the empty boxes. Gabriella and Taylor ran up to her and grabbed her arms.

"That's not all!" Taylor said hardly able to hold in her excitement.

They led her to her bedroom.

"Guys, these pictures, I love them…"

Gabriella opened the bedroom door. All six guys sat watching in anticipation. Lexie face turned to utter shock as she looked at her roommates and tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"You guys are the best roommates _ever_!"

"It wasn't just us," Gabriella began as Lexie wiped her tears off of her face and they turned to the smiling guys on their couches, "They helped us all day! Lex, that's Cameron, Dylan, and Scott, and of course you already know the other three."

"Are you serious?!" Lexie asked still stunned.

They all shook their heads.

"Nice to finally meet you," Cameron smiled.

"You have a lot of stuff" Scott joked with a glance at Taylor.

"Welcome home!" Dylan added not quite sure what else to say.

With that they all started laughing and the three girls hugged. The guys looked at each other suspiciously; all jumped up from the couches, and engulfed the girls.

"Group hug!" Dylan yelled, and they all laughed again.

As they broke apart Lexie excused herself to go shower before the pizza got there. Once it did the nine of them sat around talking, laughing, playing random games, and eating until it was time to go to another orientation session.

The three girls walked out of the room arm-in-arm with the three of the guys in front of them and three behind.

The three guys behind them, Dylan, Chad, and Scott, all grinned as they ran up to the girls and slipped in between each of their arms so that the girls then had their arms around the guys. Troy, Luke, and Cameron turned around and laughed at the sight. They slowed down to wait for the others and happily, they all left the building together.

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_Hope you liked it!!! Thanks for all of the reviews last time, I appreciate all of them and LOVE reading what you have to say! _


	8. Rain On Our Parade

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Here's the next one...Thanks again SOOO much for the reviews!!! I'm sorry this one took me a little while to get out, I was reading Harry Potter 3 and I got toward the end this week and I couldn't put it down! Honestly your reviews make me want to write so much more:-) Thaaaaaanks!  
_

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**-Chapter 9-**

_-Rain On Our Parade- _

The rest of the weekend the nine friends were almost inseparable. By Wednesday, the rest of the students were back on campus and classes had started. The weekend and the beginning of the week had turned out to be perfect weather, but When Gabriella woke up on Wednesday morning she saw rain streaming down her and Taylor's windows. When she walked out the door she made sure that she grabbed her umbrella.

Chad woke up 10 minutes before his class started. He was supposed to be meeting Dylan in the hall at the same moment.

"Crap!" He yelled aloud as Troy came walking out of the bathroom, "Troy, why didn't you wake me up?!"

"I didn't know what time your class was," Troy answered innocently.

"Dude, that's a lie and you know it. Where's your head at anyway?" He asked a very distracted Troy.

Then a loud knock on the apartment door rang through to their bedroom.

"Dang it! That's Dyl!"

"So go!" Troy looked at Chad with bulging eyes, "Why are you worried about my head if you're going to be late for your first college class ever?"

"Right!" Chad grabbed his backpack and ran for the door, glad he always slept in sports clothes and hoping no one would know the difference. He stopped quickly at the door almost running into it, but opening it quickly instead.

"Chad, we have to go!"

The boys raced down the stairs, looked outside, and then turned to each other with looks of frustration when they saw the rain.

"Let's run for it," they agreed.

They pushed open the doors and started at a full sprint towards their building, ignoring the random looks they were receiving from other students.

Gabriella turned around to see what people around her were talking about. What she saw made her laugh a little too hard. Chad and Dylan had just turned a corner. Both were running as if a monster was chasing them and they were soaked head to toe.

"Guys!" Gabriella called as they were running toward her, "Here, come under my umbrella! We're going to the same class, remember?"

The boys both stopped and jumped under her umbrella, one on each side of her. They both started panting right away.

"Thanks…so…much," Chad managed as they began to walk again.

Once they had regained their breath Dylan started laughing to himself.

"What's so funny?" Gabriella questioned to the boy on her left.

"Well…Gabriella, ella, ella invited us under her umbrella, ella, ella, eh, eh, eh" He half sang with a laugh.

"Dude that's so good! We should make the whole song to her name!" Chad joined in.

Gabriella just giggled at her two new friends…they sure did keep life interesting.

The two boys started discussing lines for their new song all throughout their first class.

"Wait, wait, I've got the perfect one…" Dylan started.

"Guys," Gabriella urged in a whisper, "We have to pay attention, this is the first class!"

"Gabi, that's your job. Trust me, you'll love this song…we'll pay attention next class." Chad reassured her.

Gabriella rolled her eyes in slight frustration with the guys, could they really not be taking college seriously? It may be a long semester, at least I'll never get bored, she thought as the teacher finished the class introduction and handing out the syllabi.

"Alright, I'll see you all back here on Friday, read over your syllabi and chapter one for then."

Dylan, Chad, and Gabriella walked outside; it was still pouring down rain so Gabriella pulled out her umbrella again and offered for the guys to join her underneath.

Chad and Dylan looked at each other with those suspicious smirks that had become all too familiar when they were together (especially if Scotty was there too!).

Gabriella turned to them questioningly, "What are you two up to?"

Dylan and Chad then broke into song…they sang with emotion in their voices and faces and had even managed to come up with choreography…

_Our friend shines, she shines forever_

-Dylan put his hands up as if they were the sun and Chad put sunglasses on-

_  
We'll be here for her forever_

-Both boys took a step back and slid their hands to make a straight line-

_  
Said We'll always be her friend_

-Link their arms through Gabriella's while pointing to her-

_  
Took an oath We're a stick with her till the end_

-Put their hands up as if they were taking an oath-

_  
Now that it's raining more than ever  
Know that we'll still have her umbrella  
She'll always be our Gabriella  
She'll always be our Gabriella  
(Ella ella eh eh eh)  
Be our Gabriella  
(Ella ella eh eh eh)  
Be our Gabriella  
(Ella ella eh eh eh)  
Be our Gabriella  
(Ella ella eh eh eh eh eh eh)_

By this time Gabriella's face was bright red and the people they were passing on the sidewalks were all staring at them. She had tried to cut in many times to get them to stop, but they kept going. When they finished they both had huge grins on their faces and once again were oblivious to the people around them.

"And as amazing as we are…that my friend," Chad turned to Dylan, "Is why basketball players don't sing!"

"Guys!" Gabriella said quietly, "Everyone is staring at us!"

Chad and Dylan looked around as if she were crazy, but then quickly noticed she was right.

"Why wouldn't they stare at us? We _are_ two of the best freshman on the basketball team" Chad boasted.

Dylan shook his head in agreement, "So Gabi, didn't you like the song???"

Now she giggled again realizing that as embarrassing as it was, their song was really nice, and the motions…they were just hilarious. "Yes, I loved it" She finished as they stepped inside their building. They all climbed onto the elevator.

Chad walked into the apartment still singing "Gabriella." Troy and Luke who were sitting on the couch watching television and talking turned to him when they heard what he was saying.

"Chad…what did you just say?"

"Oh! Well…" Chad began and continued on to tell the whole story about the song.

Troy and Luke looked at each other, both knowing Gabriella so well, and then burst out laughing.

"You know you couldn't have picked a better person to do that too, right?" Luke asked in his laugh.

"Seriously, she wouldn't have been expecting that," Troy added.

Chad just looked at them both confused, "Why not? It's not like it was weird…it was just fun, I do that kind of stuff all the time."

"Yeah, but that wouldn't have happened to Gabi in High School…our group of friends wasn't really…outgoing. We _never_ would have done that to her….But I'm so glad you did!"

The boys had a good laugh and then Troy and Luke made Chad tell them the rest of the lyrics.

Luke pulled out his phone a few minutes later, "I have to call Logan and tell him, he won't believe it."

"Logan…right" Troy got up to go into his bedroom when Luke dialed the phone. He kept forgetting that Gabriella had a boyfriend and that her boyfriend was good friends with Luke. Sometimes he would find himself so caught up in thoughts about her and debating on if he should ask her on a date…he even let himself get as far as thinking about how he would ask. Then somehow Logan always came up. Troy just remembered that Gabriella was happy…and maybe someday he could make her that happy too.

Everyone had Freshman Seminar together as their last class of the afternoon. Chad, Troy, Scotty, Dylan, Luke, and Cameron waited on the bottom floor for the three girls glad it had finally stopped raining. Since it was the farthest building away they all decided to leave a little early and walk together to catch up and talk about what their classes were like.

As they walked Chad slowed his step to try to talk to Taylor.

"Hey," he turned to her once everyone else was ahead of them.

"Hey Chad."

"Can I talk to you?"

Taylor was intrigued. Chad wanted to talk to her? He actually seemed serious too, "Of course, what's up?" She had come to appreciate both him and Troy and was glad that she had given them a chance…but glad that they had both seemed to change since a few months ago when they were still in High School.

"Well…" He started nervously; he didn't want this to come out wrong, "I'm really glad that I've gotten to know you over the past few days. It's so weird that I've known you for so long and we never talked," He was beginning to talk faster, "And then we came here and somehow we ended up in the same group of friends. Now it feels like the nine of us have been hanging out for a long time and I wouldn't want to ruin that…"

"Me either Chad," She looked at him with a face of confusion mixed with interest and understanding.

"I just wanted to make sure that we're cool with everything from High School. We both had different groups of friends and we just didn't talk. I thought you were boring, but it was just because I didn't know you. I don't think that at all now." He looked down at her as he finished.

Taylor smiled, "It's ok Chad, I thought you were just a stupid basketball player, like some wild animal or something. Now I know you aren't though. You're a really great guy. Everything is cool, we're in college, not High School…I think this is going to be better." As she finished she looked at the group of friends ahead of her. In the short time they had been together all of them, and the guy standing beside her and all pulled through when anyone needed something.

Chad smiled back, "Good, let's go catch up."

As the group slid into the auditorium with the rest of the freshman class, Luke deliberately made sure he was next to Gabriella.

He turned to her with worry in his eyes, "El, I have to talk to you."

"You called me El," Gabriella smiled at him, "You haven't called me that in a few days. I think I missed it."

"Um…yeah," He looked at her with worry in his eyes, "That's because…Chad came up to our room and he told us about the song that him and Dylan wrote." Gabriella laughed. "Well, I called Log because I thought he would think it was funny." Her face now turned serious and she seemed a little worried. "Gabriella I'm sorry! He didn't seem to think it was funny. He didn't understand why two random guys, that you only met a few days ago, would do that and I think he thought that maybe they liked you and Gabi, I'm so sorry…He was really upset…I think he mumbled something about coming out here when we hung up the phone."

Gabriella sat stunned. She couldn't believe it. It had just been a song, a harmless song that two friends joked about. Logan was coming out here, he was mad. How could they already be having so much trouble with the long distance relationship when she had just gotten to school a week from tomorrow? She turned to Lexie who had heard the whole thing, and although she didn't understand it all, she saw the look on Gabriella's face and she instantly felt bad for her roommate. She gave her a look of sympathy and made a mental note to delicately ask about it when they got back to the apartment.

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_There it is! I don't know how this one was so please let me know what you thought! Thanks! _


	9. Introduction to a Very Long Day

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Hey everyone! I'm SOOO sorry that I haven't updated in forever. I was on vacation and couldn't get to a computer, but don't worry...i'm definitely still writing:-) Here's the next chapter...It is exactly what the title says..._

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**-Chapter 10-**

_-Introduction to a Very Long Day- _

By the time Thursday morning rolled around all of the girls moods had been changed. Gabriella didn't know what to feel after her phone call with Logan in which he told her that he already booked a flight and he would be out Thursday morning. She went between excited to see him because she missed him, to mad that he was interrupting her time with her new college friends, to downright sad because she knew deep down what she had to do when he came.

Taylor and Lexie just wanted to support Gabriella, but due to her differing opinions, didn't really know how.

Lexie also had nerves swarming her stomach as she was thinking about her first real college soccer game…it was today.

Taylor was already extremely overwhelmed with school, she was very bright, but pre-med was hard. So far, having Luke in her classes and spending time with her other friends were the only things keeping her sane. She truly appreciated all of the different personalities that formed their group of friends and knew that their light-heartedness was something she needed.

Chad woke up the next morning at 6:00, two hours before his first class. He showered, got dressed, and then went into the kitchen to find food. A groggy Troy followed him out.

"Chad, why are you up? You don't have class for another hour and a half…and I don't have class for another three!" He added slightly annoyed.

"Well yesterday I slept in and it wasn't a very good day, so obviously I thought I'd try getting up early today." He spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"We're…"

BANG, BANG, BANG.

Troy had started speaking, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

The two boys looked at each other with utter confusion.

"Who is here at 6:30 in the morning?" Troy asked looking accusingly at Chad with exasperation in his voice.

Chad's hands immediately shot into the air to signal his innocence, "It wasn't me! I didn't invite anyone over!"

BANG, BANG, BANG.

Troy looked at Chad one more time as if to say "I don't believe you!" and then walked over to the door to open it.

Before Troy stood a very unfamiliar boy, wearing jeans and a long sleeved shirt, with black hair and a bag over his shoulder. Chad had followed Troy over to the door.

Chad looked at the boy curiously, "Um dude, did you know that you're in California?"

The boy looked at him as if he were an alien.

Troy shook his head, "Do you need something?"

"Yeah, I'm looking for Luke MacaDangdang."

"Oh." Troy and Chad both looked surprised, but it was Troy who realized who the boy was.

"Yeah, you must be Logan, come on in."

The three boys walked into the apartment Chad silently trying to talk to Troy who kept waving him off.

"His room's right there" Troy pointed as he walked over to the couches and didn't attempt to (or want to by any means) say another word to Logan.

Chad followed Troy and sat down.

Logan knocked on the bedroom door and Luke emerged looking as if he had just woken up.

"Log, I'm so sorry! I didn't expect you this early."

"It's ok, I didn't mean to wake you up."

Luke ushered Logan into the room and the two began talking. A little while later Troy popped his head in the bedroom door.

"Hey, Chad and I are going to go over to the gym and shoot around since _coincidentally_ we're both up so early." He finished the last part with a roll of his eyes towards where Chad was sitting behind him, "Do you want to come?"

Luke looked over at Logan who Troy had purposely not made eye contact with, "No, I think I'll stay here and hang out with Logan until my class. Thanks though…Oh yeah, why _are_ you guys up?"

Troy rolled his eyes again, "Chad's logic…yesterday he woke up late and didn't have a good day…so he thought he'd try getting up really early today. You know Chad." Luke and Troy laughed a little and then Troy continued, "Ok, we'll see you later then. Oh," He added as he turned to leave, "Don't forget about Lexie's soccer game this afternoon…Taylor, Gabs, and the guys are all meeting us here at 3:30 to go over to the field."

"Got it, thanks Troy"

With that Troy left the room. Logan turned to Luke with a questioning look on his face and as he was about to say something…

"That's weak Luke! You should be coming to the gym with us!" Chad laughed.

After that they heard the door slam shut.

"The gym, soccer games…and who are Taylor and Gabs?" Logan asked. His face was now distorted with his eyebrows furrowed and his mouth slightly downcast as he looked at Luke.

"Oh, Troy and Chad are both on the basketball team so they go over to the gym a lot for practice or just to work out. Since I'm not working on the farm at all anymore, I go with them to stay in shape. Gabs is your girlfriend…Gabriella. Taylor is her roommate and Lexie is their other roommate. She plays soccer so we're all going to her game. Hasn't Gabi told you about them?"

"Wait…First…Gabi? Since when do you call her that? And why did Troy call her Gabs? That's just weird it's not like he knows her very well…And sorry about your roommates both being jocks…they seem awful if it's any consolation…And so what if Ella's roommate plays soccer? That doesn't mean that you _have_ to go to the game."

Luke was shocked. He had never said anything mean about his roommates, they were both his friends. He didn't feel like answering all of Logan's questions so he diverted the conversation.

"Well, I have to get ready for class. Taylor and Lexie are coming down here for breakfast; we all have class in the same building this morning." He turned to go toward the bathroom to get a shower, but added, "And Troy and Chad are not awful, you don't know them at all, and I don't know how you can come off saying that, but I wouldn't say it to _Gabi_ if I were you."

He couldn't believe how angry he was. He had been psyched for Logan to come (except for the whole Gabriella crying and being upset thing), but now it felt like after only one week away he didn't even know his so called best friend anymore.

Logan sat on Luke's bed confused. Luke had just yelled at him. He had never done that before, and sticking up for a bunch of jocks! Whatever, Logan thought and he pulled out his phone to call Gabriella.

"Hello?" Gabriella mumbled into the phone. She had no idea why someone would call her before 8:00 in the morning.

"Ella! Hi. I'm here; I came to Luke's room first because I didn't know when you were getting up and everything."

Right Gabriella thought, Logan was here in California…at her school…a few floors below her. She mustered up all the enthusiasm she could, "Logan! Hi! I didn't know you were getting in so early. Um, I just kind of woke up."

"Alright, well do you want to try and get together before your first class? What is your schedule like today?"

"Sure, we could," Gabriella glanced at her clock, 7:15, "Let me get ready and then I'll give you a call. My first class is at 9:30 and then I have another one at 12:00."

Gabriella walked out into the living room to find Taylor and Lexie sitting at the kitchen bar talking in their pajamas. She smiled as she thought about how much she loved this life.

"Morning Gabi!" Both girls called when they saw her.

"Hi guys"

"We were just talking about Lexie's game today," Taylor gushed when Gabriella sat down with them, "I was telling her that I'm so excited to go!"

"Thanks so much for coming guys, it really means a lot. My stomach is already in knots and I really didn't sleep well at all last night."

"Aw, I'm sure you'll do great Lex," Gabriella encouraged her.

"Hey, we better get ready, we told Luke that we'd be down there by 8:15 for breakfast," Taylor changed the subject as she looked at the clock.

"You guys are going down to the guys apartment?"

"Yeah, Luke and I have class together this morning and Lexie's is in the same building."

"Oh, well…Logan got here this morning," This earned concerned faces from both Taylor and Lexie, "He wanted to talk this morning, but I need a little more time to think. Do you think I could come down with you guys so he and I aren't alone yet?"

"Of _course_," Both girls assured her.

After getting ready the three girls headed down to the apartment that had become very familiar to them.

"Hey guys, come on in" Luke greeted them.

They all walked in and saw Logan standing across the room. Lexie and Taylor looked apprehensively at Gabriella. Gabriella and Logan locked eyes and to her surprise a smile crept onto her face and she could feel herself getting excited.

"Logan!" She ran across the room and flung her arms around him.

Everyone in the room was taken aback by her reaction of seeing him. Lexie and Taylor glanced at each other, both shrugged, and then smiled. Luke automatically wanted to tell Gabriella what Logan had said about Troy and Chad…if he was mad at Logan, he wanted her to be too…but then again, he thought, two of my best friends look extremely happy right now. With that thought a smile crept onto his face as well.

Troy was in the locker room finishing getting dressed again after a good morning workout. As he began to think about his day, he realized that Thursdays were probably going to be his favorite days. He only had two classes, both of which happened to be education classes, which he happened to have with Gabriella. They had already decided to have lunch together, and then of course there was the Thursday night ritual that they had both mentioned to each other throughout the week. Troy smiled to himself, man he thought, this girl really is doing something crazy to me.

He looked down at his watch and saw that he was supposed to be meeting her in the lobby of their building soon and headed for the door, completely lost in his thoughts and completely forgetting who had shown up at his door this morning.

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_There ya have it! Please let me know if you're still reading! Thanks SO much again:-) _


	10. Just the Beginning

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor._

_Hey all! New chapter time! Thanks again for the reviews, you are all honestly amazing!_

_Enjoy!_

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**-Chapter 11-**

_-Just the Beginning-_

Luke, Lexie, Taylor, Gabriella, and Logan had all had an enjoyable breakfast…er…at least Lexie and Taylor did.

Once they saw how happy Gabriella seemed they both introduced themselves and continued on as if everything were great. However, they noticed Gabriella acting different and weren't sure how they felt about it.

Gabriella was excited to see Logan, but she felt herself become the person he expected her to be rather than herself. No matter what the subject was, she constantly tried to bring the conversation back to classes and what they were learning.

Luke was glad that Gabriella and Logan seemed happy, but he saw the Gabriella that everyone else knew in High School coming back and he knew she deserved more than that in a relationship. He knew that in High School he was the only one that she let past the brainy Gabriella. She had tried to let Logan & Anna past, but they both asked if she was feeling okay whenever she did. Eventually she just stopped trying.

Once it was time for Lexie, Taylor, and Luke to leave Luke turned to Logan.

"Just make yourself comfortable in the apartment. You're probably tired from the flight and everything, so if you want to get some sleep you should lock the door because this is pretty much where our friends hang out so they come in without knocking all the time." He knew that he was speaking shortly to Logan, but at the moment, he didn't really feel the need to be nice to him.

The three of them were all apprehensive to leave Gabriella and Logan alone; however, they knew they had to because Gabi's class didn't start until a half hour after theirs.

Once they had left Gabriella looked at Logan with a serious face and spoke sternly, "We need to talk. We need to talk about why you're here and about what's been going on lately. I know that. But I have to leave soon and I don't want to start this conversation when we don't have time to finish it."

Logan, slightly taken aback by her bluntness, simply agreed.

They sat and watched television to pass the time. After what seemed like days of awkward silence it was finally time for Gabriella to leave.

As Gabriella stood up to leave, Logan grabbed her hand and spoke, "Will I see you between your classes?"

"No, I only have a half hour break so I'm going to stay on that side of campus. I'll just come back here when I'm done the second class."

With that she walked out the door. Tears started to prickle her face; she was confused as to her own feelings, not wanting to hurt someone that she loved, but knowing that she was never truly _in_ love with him. She rounded on the lobby and for the first time that day she felt herself truly smile. There was Troy. He was waiting for her with a peach smoothie in one hand and a strawberry in the other.

"Morning Gabs," He smiled genuinely as he handed Gabriella her peach smoothie.

"Troy!" Gabriella blinked back the tears she had felt a moment earlier, "Thank you! You didn't have to get these."

"I was on my way back to meet you from the gym so I figured why not. In honor of the second week of our tradition," At this Troy noticed Gabriella frown, "What's wrong?"

"Troy…Logan's here I don't know…"

"Oh, I'm sorry…I forgot," He was suddenly blushing, feeling stupid for thinking that they were actually going to go, "It's not big deal, we don't have to…"

"No," Gabriella stated firmly, "I still want to go Troy. We have been planning to for a week now. It's just that I don't know how I'm going to be able to get away from him without everyone else finding out."

"Oh, well then that's not a problem," He reassured her, "We have three and a half hours together to figure that out!"

With that said they finished their walk into their first class of the day and settled into seats on the side of the classroom a few rows from the back. As the class piled in Troy was watching, waiting for someone else they knew to come in, but they never did. He smiled to himself; at least it'll just be us for this class he thought.

After class, which they had tried desperately to pay attention in (but just ended up making comments to each other about random things the teacher said instead), Troy and Gabriella walked out of the room and towards an eatery.

"So, Intro to Education," Troy began once they were in the hot sun again, "looks like you'll be stuck with me all semester."

Gabriella giggled, "Yes that would be the class that we need partners in. I feel bad for myself already."

"Hey!"

They both laughed and continued talking about everything that was on the syllabus they had just received. Their projects ranged from bulletin boards, to idea files, to full out teaching a lesson. Exactly the kind of thing both of them were excited for in the prospect of becoming teachers.

The next two hours passed quickly for them. It turned out that their _Methods of Teaching Math_ professor was really funny. Somehow he took the boring subject and made it interesting enough to keep the whole class interested for the full hour and a half.

"No homework yet, I'll see all of your ugly faces here on Tuesday…Oh, woops," He looked over his shoulder with his body turned toward the whiteboard, "I mean your wonderful faces." With a wink he turned back to the board.

"That was entertaining," Gabriella mused as they began their walk back to the dorm.

"He's awesome! That's the kind of teacher I want to be some day!"

"I have no doubt in my mind, Troy, that that is exactly the kind of teacher you will be." She smirked at him.

As they became within feet of the dorm Gabriella looked up and stopped walking. She had suddenly remembered what she had to do when she got up to the guys apartment.

"Gabs are you coming?"

"Yeah…I'm coming. Troy…could I have a hug?" She looked into his eyes.

Troy was surprised by the question, but walked up to her and hugged her tight, "Is everything ok?"

She smiled, exactly what she needed, "Yeah, I'm just…I just… Logan is waiting for me up there and I'm really nervous about how our talk is going to go…. Sorry, I just needed a hug."

"Never be sorry for needing a hug. Do you want to talk about it before we go up?"

As much as Troy didn't want to think about Logan (he had realized that Logan was most likely the reason Gabriella had never called him back all those months ago, and the bitterness inside him grew a little deeper), he knew he still wanted to be there for Gabriella, no matter what.

"No, I just need to talk to him. I just wanted to feel safe before I did."

They walked into the building and got on the elevator in silence. Troy could feel every muscle in his face trying to form into a smug grin, Gabriella felt safe when he hugged her, but he forced himself to stay straight-faced for her sake.

Before he opened the door to his apartment, Troy turned to Gabriella and hugged her one more time.

"It will be okay Gabs, no matter what happens it'll be okay."

With that they broke apart and Troy opened the door. All seven of their friends were sitting on the couches talking.

"No, you're so wrong he's not the greatest-"

"What are you talking about, of course he is-"

"Hey guys! Where's Logan?" Gabriella interjected through the debate.

"Oh what, we're not good enough?" Scotty joked.

"Oh be quiet! I just need to talk to him."

"He's in my room," Luke answered shortly.

Troy took a seat beside Lexie on the end of a couch; Gabriella turned and walked to Luke's room.

"Hey, let's go up to my apartment, everyone else is down here."

With no other words spoken Logan stood up from Luke's bed and followed her.

"Hey guys, we're going to go up stairs, see you all later!" Gabriella called.

The seven friends eyed each other suspiciously, all wondering what exactly that meant.

Once they reached the girls apartment Gabriella and Logan sat down on opposite couches.

"Logan," Gabriella pulled in a deep breath, "Why are you here?"

"To see you."

"There is more to it than that and you and I both know it. Otherwise you wouldn't have just jumped on a plane and flew out that night," Gabriella could feel herself getting angry.

"Maybe I just missed you." He looked up at her with pleading eyes as if begging her to just believe him.

She stared at him, not blinking, "So it had nothing to do with the stupid little song that Chad and Dylan wrote?"

He looked up at her sheepishly, "That may have had a little to do with it, but it wasn't just that."

"What else was it?" She asked impatiently.

"Everything Gabriella. You came out here, made new friends, you were hanging out with guys all the time, and it felt like you _never_ had time for me. The song just tipped it all off, I know one of those guys likes you, and they're all jerks."

"Excuse me?! They are not jerks and you have no right to call them that. They are all great guys who appreciate me for me! Chad and Dylan don't like me, they're just my friends! You know…like Luke? And as for the time issue, I'm at college. I am busy all the time. If not with classes and homework then I'm getting to know the people that I'm going to be with over the next four years. You _have_ to understand that."

"They appreciate you for you?!" Logan began ignoring everything else Gabriella had said, "And what, you think I don't?!"

There was a small knock on the door. Gabriella jumped out of surprise as she saw the door open and Lexie walk in.

"Sorry guys, I just need to grab my soccer stuff, it's time for me to head down to the field."

She made her way quickly to her bedroom and grabbed her bag. As she was walking out again Gabriella walked over to her and gave her a huge hug.

"Good luck! I can't wait to come and watch you play! You know we'll be there before the game even starts!"

"Thanks Gabi! I'm here for you too, don't forget that."

With that she exited the room and pulled out her cell phone. She texted Taylor, "_Tay, someone should come up here and be here for when they're done fighting. Gabi seems really upset. I'll see you soon."_

Taylor grabbed her phone and read the text. She immediately stood up from her spot on the floor in the guy's apartment and began walking over to the door.

"Where are you going?" Chad asked, surprised by her abrupt movement.

"I need to go upstairs, Lexie just text me."

"No you can't! You have to help us with our signs and what about you and Gabi's shirts?"

She looked at Chad and then at all the other guys around her as if asking if anyone had another idea.

"Why don't I go," Luke spoke up, "You guys don't need my help with these, just make sure I have something to hold."

"Ok, but you shouldn't go up alone, I mean, we don't know how long it might be."

"I'll go with him. He and I can hold a banner together, so just make sure you make us one."

With that the two of them walked out the door, hopped on the elevator, and began walking towards the girl's apartment. Once they were within a few feet they heard yelling.

"And now…all we have to do, is wait. Thanks for coming up Troy."

Troy nodded his head and both boys slumped to the floor sitting outside the door listening.

"No Logan, there is so much more to me than just that!"

"What Gabriella, what have I missed after knowing you for FOUR years?!"

"That's just it, you have known me for four years and still people here know me better than you do. Don't you understand?! Luke was the only one who truly knew me in High School. You and Anna were too stuck on homework and classes to even see that."

"Is that right? Then please tell me more about the true you! Because stupid me thought all along that I actually knew the girl I was dating!"

"You knew me, but you only ever knew part of me. I tried so many times to show you that I was sarcastic, or goofy, or that I had other hobbies, but you just blew me off about it every time."

"Then why in the world did you go out with me in the first place?!"

Gabriella could feel it in her bones. They were going to break up. After being together for so long, they were going to end it. Right here, right now. Tears started pouring down her face, but Logan stayed where he was, tears prickling his own eyes.

Slightly lowering her voice Gabriella answered, "I went out with you because you were one of my _best_ friends. We had a lot in common…well; we liked all the same subjects. You were a good listener and I could count on you."  
"So what, I'm not any of those things anymore?"

"Of course you are Logan, but I need more. There is more to life than serious conversations all the time. There has to be room for fun. I love you with all of my heart, but I am not _in_ love with you."

"What more do you need Gabriella, because I am in love with you and I want to figure this out."

"Logan," Tears now pouring even harder down her face Gabriella tried to talk, but her thoughts kept interrupting her. She was really going to do this. Even though he didn't want to, she needed to. She was going to hurt someone that she loved and possibly lose a four year long friendship. She decided that in the long run this is exactly what she needed to say, "Logan…I don't think we can figure this out. We have to break up; I know that you are not the guy that I am going to marry. I need more sparks in a relationship, more moments that take my breath away. More laughs, more spontaneity. It's just who I am. You will always be one of the best friends I have, we got through High School together, but we can't be together anymore. It's over."

Logan stood up and looked at her. Tears were now plainly rolling out of his eyes and he was making no attempt to stop them.

"Ok. Bye Gabriella. I love you."

With that he walked over to the door and opened it.

"I love you too." She mumbled, but the mumbled reached his ears and he smiled gently and left.

He saw Luke and Troy sitting in the hall and through his tears gave them a puzzled look, "What are you guys doing here? Have you been listening to our conversation?"

"We er—" Troy began, but was cut off.

"You know what, it doesn't matter." Logan turned and began to walk down the hallway.

Luke's anger melted away. He hadn't thought about how badly a break up with Gabriella would effect Logan, nor did he really think that it would happen.

"Troy, I have to go talk to him. Can you take care of Gabriella?"

"Yeah, I got her, no problem."

With that Luke half jogged down the hallway to catch up with Logan and Troy entered the apartment.

He saw Gabriella still sitting on the couch, her face in her hands, crying with no end in site. He sat down beside her and pulled her into a hug. He simply held her and said nothing. He knew he could stay here holding her forever, or at least until she was ready to talk.

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_There you go! This one is pretty long, but finally what we've been waiting for happened! Lol. Do you guys like the length of the chapters? Let me know! Thanks again SO much for reading!_

_Oh, and let's play a game...who can guess what kind of teachers (like, elementary, special education, high school/which subject) Troy and Gabriella are going to be??? _

_Hint...they're different _


	11. Game Time

_Sorry it takes me so long to get this updated. Super busy, you know how it is. Plus I have been reading the Harry Potter series non-stop, but I finished #7 so I'm all done! Anyway, here is a new one; I've been pretty excited for it!_

_This chapter is dedicated to _Rizmu_…also known as _Charisma_! Thank you so much for the PM!_

_I don't own HSM Gabriella, Troy, Chad, or Taylor. I do own this whole story, Luke, Lexie, Logan, Cameron, Dylan, and Scottie.__  
_

_Enjoy!_

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**-Chapter 12-**

_-Game Time-_

After awhile of sitting in silence Gabriella finally looked up at Troy, her eyes still tear stained, but momentarily the tears had neglected to fall.

"Why are you here? Not that I'm complaining, but…how did you know I'd need someone?"

"Lexie let Taylor know…Tay was going to come up, but she's working on some stuff for the game for us. Luke and I volunteered to come up…probably a little too quickly. We both really wanted to be here for you."

"Luke?"

"Oh, when Logan left he said that he was going to talk to him," and with a small mischievous smile Troy added, "I assured him that I would take care of you."

"Oh, you can take care of me, can you?" Gabriella asked joining in on Troy's playful tone.

"Of course I can!"

Troy's smile broadened as Gabriella reached around him for a hug once more.

"Thank you Troy. It looks like I may need a hug from you more often than I thought."

"Like I said Gabs, anytime. I'm always here for you."

With that Gabriella resigned back to her own cushion on the couch and stared at Troy with a blank expression.

_Should I talk to him about it_ Gabriella thought to herself…_of course, he'll understand, he's him._

"I broke up with him," she finally stated, "I don't know why I stayed with him for so long Troy. It was just so hard. He was one of my best friends and when he asked me out it was like I only had two choices…one say no and lose him as a friend…which probably would have broken up all four of us, leaving me with no one throughout High School…well, I probably would have stayed close to Luke…"

She paused for a moment looking toward the ceiling obviously in thought. She then once again turned her gaze to Troy and continued.

"The other was to say yes, and be with him even though I knew I never actually liked him as more than a friend. I tried _so_ hard to convince myself that I did, and a few times I think I believed it, but it was never actually true."

"You tried to do the right thing all along, but Gabs…tonight I think you really did do the right thing. I can't say that I know what he's going through because honestly I've never felt that strongly for a girl - you're the only girl like you I know – but I know that he's going to understand. If everything you just told me is true, then you aren't the right girl for him," Troy inwardly smiled, thanking God that his last statement was true as he continued, "He'll find someone that is perfect for him, and you will too."

"But what if I don't? What if he was my one chance and I let him go?"

"If that were the case, I don't think you ever would have let him go."

"No, I guess you're right…I just…He never…I don't know. Our relationship was never spontaneous. I always knew when he would come. We planned our "date nights" or our "study sessions" and there were never any…sparks?" Gabriella's face showed confusion at her own words, as if she was inwardly wondering if Troy would understand. A moment later she smiled sheepishly, "I can't believe I just said that to you. I am officially the cheesiest person alive."

Troy smiled at her statement and at the small smile now playing on Gabriella's face, "No, the crazy part is that I actually understand what you mean! I guess I'm cheesy too…I used that line on one of my ex-girlfriends."

They both burst out laughing and the moment was eased, though somehow they both knew that they would eventually return to the conversation because Gabriella's thoughts were not finished being expressed.

In the midst of their laughing and teasing Gabriella glanced at the clock which sat on the end table next to her couch.

"Troy! We have to go! Lexie's game starts in 45 minutes!"

"Oh crud! Everyone is going to be wondering where we are-"

"Tay's going to panic-"

"Chad's going to yell at me-"

Then they looked at each other again and began laughing at their statements.

"We know our friends too well," Troy said shaking his head as he got up with his hand held out to help Gabriella up from the couch.

"It's sad that we actually got nervous about what they were going to do. Just let me grab my purse and run into the bathroom real quick."

Troy stood looking around the apartment. He saw the pictures that they had hung up on the first day and noticed a new addition. On a wall near the girl's kitchen table someone had neatly hung a banner reading '_Life Ain't Always Beautiful, but it's a beautiful ride'_ just below it Troy spotted a tiny piece of paper on which was written, 'A place to hang the memories of all the times to come with the people we just met, yet who seem to be the best friends any of us could ask for.'

"Taylor did that," Troy jumped slightly at the sound of Gabriella's voice. She giggled and continued, "She said she thought we could hang anything on that wall…pictures, movie stubs, tests, small stories, quotes…anything that brought a smile to one of our faces. She said she hoped all of you guys would see it as well, we could all build the wall together."

"That's really cool. Girls are so creative."

"Correction…Taylor is so creative." Gabriella stated as she turned toward the door, "You ready to go?"

Troy turned back to Gabriella and saw that her face no longer showed signs of tears.

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30 minutes later Lexie stood on the side of the soccer field. She was pacing up and down, her blonde pony-tail swaying in the wind. Her teammates were huddled at different points on the sidelines as well. They had just finished their warm-ups, were grabbing some water, and then they would be heading back onto the field to stretch…and then…it would be time to play her first ever official college soccer game.

Lexie could not get her nerves under control. She was the only freshman starting this year. She had been so sure that her talents wouldn't be good enough-

"Oh my gosh! Look who's here!"

Lexie's turned to look at her teammate who had interrupted her thoughts. All of the girls on her team were now murmuring to each other excitedly…

"I can't believe they all came-"

"Have you talked to them before-?"

"Oh my gosh, he's so gorgeous-"

"Of course they would be here I mean we _are_ the girl's soccer team-"

As Lexie turned to look at what they were all talking about a huge grin spread across her face. There, walking across the bleachers on the other side of the field, were her friends. She laughed slightly at how excited her teammates were. She then laughed again remembering that she had been exactly the same way when she had first met them. Now however, they were just them…some of the best guys she had ever met…but of course, they were also almost half of the USC guy's basketball team.

Lexie walked onto the field to stretch, her heart was full of happiness that her friends really did come to her first game. In high school, she had always been good, but she had never had people in the stands to watch her play. Her parents and siblings were always busy at the resort and her friends usually lost track of time at the beach and forgot to come back to their school for the game.

Lexie settled on a spot between two of her roommates who she talked to the most, Millie and Zoe. She glanced up at her friends in the stands and saw them all talking fast to one another. Cameron, Chad, Dylan, and Luke were sitting in one row with Troy, Gabriella, Taylor, and Scotty in the row in front of them. Lexie caught Taylor's eye and Taylor's huge smile spread naturally across her face. She hit Chad, who was evidently telling some story to Troy and Cameron, on his leg (that she had been leaning back on) and pointed at Lexie. Soon all eight of them were waving at her.

"Do you think she can see our shirts?" Gabriella asked Taylor.

"Well honestly they're hard to miss, don't you think?" came as Dylan's smart remark. "I'm just kidding!" He added after the looks he got from the two girls, "You guys had just better do that for us too!"

The shirts that Taylor and Gabriella donned had started off at plain deep red T-Shirts. However, by the time Taylor was done with them the shirts looked completely different. They had been cut down the sides and tied back up to add a little flare, they had "**USC Girls Soccer**" written on the top left side of them in gold puffy paint and a little imprint of a Trojan kicking a soccer ball on the bottom-Drawn by the talented Cameron. On the back she had used Gold Glittering paint and written **"****#26 on the field, but #1 in our**" with a large red heart and an " **'S** " at the end.

As the team finished stretching they made their way once again to the sidelines…only this time it was to announce the starters.

One by one the girls were called to shake the opposing teams hand and then run to their side of the field and wait for their teammates. Finally, it was Lexie's turn. All of her nerves were finally aside and all she could feel was the electricity running through her body demanding to be put into action.

"And finally, the lone starting freshman for our USC Trojans…Number 26 Aleeeeeeeeexis McQue!!!!!"

"LEXIE!!!"

As Lexie was running toward her teammates she glanced into the stands and saw three new banners were being held into the air. She couldn't read them until she had finally taken her place at the end of the line and waited patiently while the other team was announced.

Cameron and Luke were holding the ends of a huge banner all the way over their heads that read "**The Goalkeeper is the Jewel in the Crown, getting at her should be Almost Impossible.**"

Right beneath that Chad and Dylan were holding a smaller one that read "**It is the biggest sin in Soccer to make her do any work.**"

Below all of this was another glittering sign held by Troy and Scotty. This one somehow stood out the most as it read, "**Get ready to work Goalie…Lexie's coming!**" All eight of them were screaming at the top of their lungs…heard well above everyone else. Lexie wondered to herself where they had found the famous quote by George Graham, but realized the obvious answer was Taylor, that girl could find anything on her computer. Lexie then turned from her friends and took her place on the left wing waiting for the ref to start the game.

As soon as the whistle blew everything else automatically swept from her brain and the only thoughts Lexie had were of soccer. This is where it all came together…the running, the training, the ball juggling, the sweat, the pain, the practices, and most of all…the team.

The USC Lady Trojans showed everything they had worked for in that game. They worked beautifully as a team, running up and down the field in stride, making the passes they needed to, almost feeling each others presence before they would send the ball soaring to another teammate.

After everything, it came down to a corner-kick. There was 20 seconds left in the second half. The Lady Trojans had a one point lead, but Georgia had the up coming kick. If USC could stop them the win would be in the bag, if not, the game would be forced into overtime.

The Trojans each took their position for the corner kick as did the Georgia team. Lexie was standing half-way between the goal and center-field. She was ready to run the full length of the field if her team gained possession, but she was also ready to play defense…just in case.

The ref blew his whistle and the left wing of the Georgia team ran at the small black and white ball kicking it into play. The ball soared over various players and began its trip to the ground. As the girls nearest the ball flew towards it, two got there fastest. One girl from each team leapt into the air, their only focus being to head the ball towards the other teams' goalie. It was Zoe who reached the ball first and used all of the force behind her body to hit the ball with the side of her head towards the opposite side of the field.

Lexie saw the ball and realized that there could only be a few seconds left on the clock. The ball was flying toward her and she ran towards it. As she was running she saw a girl, number 3, from the Georgia team sprinting at her. She rounded her leg as to brace the ball with her knee and quickly turned with it. She began dribbling without thinking towards the Georgia goalie, feeling her teammates moving with her. She passed off to Millie who was down the field and as the ball left her foot…

"BERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRN"

The buzzer sounded. Lexie finally let the noise around her soak in. Everyone was screaming. Lexie ran towards her teammates as they all congregated in a huge hug before making their way over to shake their opponents' hands. Gabriella and Taylor led the guys onto the field toward their roommate. After she finished shaking hands with the Georgia team, Lexie saw the rest of the gang headed towards her.

"Lex, you were amazing!" Chad yelled.

"I've never been to a soccer game in my whole life, but you were so good!" Taylor gushed at her.

Everyone laughed before each taking a turn to congratulate Lexie.

"Alright guys, I have to go in…you know, post-game talk. I'm going to get changed and then I'll be right back out!"

"You better be cause we're going out to dinner!" Cameron yelled after her.

"We are?" Chad asked.

"Well, I think we should. I mean, it was her first college soccer game. I know that I'm going to want to go out to eat and celebrate after our first game."

"That's true man," Troy agreed, "Where should we go?"

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"Guys, where did you find this place?" Luke asked as they all walked into a small, deserted diner.

"Well, our first night here we were all really hungry, but we didn't finish our room in time to go to the cafeteria so we jumped in Cam's jeep and drove around for awhile." Scott explained.

After a slight debate they had decided to trust Cameron, Scott, and Dylan and try a small diner called _Summer's_.

The atmosphere was perfect. The walls were painted with ocean murals and random surfboards, palm trees, lights, and sand decorated the walls and some corners or the diner. There was a booth in the corner that wrapped around in an L-shape that could comfortably seat all nine of them.

As they piled into the booth a middle-aged woman with beach-blonde hair made her way towards them dressed in khaki shorts and a green t-shirt with the diner's logo on it.

"Hello there! What can I get you kids today?"

The rest of the dinner went on reliving the soccer game, talking about random things that happened throughout the day, laughing at stories told, and eating delicious food. No one brought up the topic of Logan; for fear that it might upset Gabriella. However, Taylor and Lexie were both dying to talk to her about it; and Luke knew that he needed to.

"I love this place." Gabriella stated as they left the diner.

"Told you so," Dylan answered in a sing-song voice.

After hopping into various cars, trucks, and jeeps all nine of them made their way back to campus and began to split up to go to various places or back to their rooms. As they did this Troy hung back and separated himself from the rest of the group without being seen. Once hidden behind the side of the wall he pulled out his phone and hit Gabriella's number on his speed dial.

_Its up to me .. Its up to me  
And I'm still falling  
Its up to me .. its up to me  
And I'm still calling_

_Its up to me  
Its up to me  
Its up to me and I'm still hoping  
Its up to me for you to hold me  
Its up to me to let you go  
Its up to me  
But for all you know  
I'm already gone_

"Gabi, that's you."

"Oh thanks."

Gabriella looked down at her phone and saw the picture of Troy blinking in front of her. She glanced backward and saw the sly smile on his face as he peaked around the corner. The escape plan was in action.

"Oh guys, this is someone from one of my classes. We're going to go work on a project. I'm not sure how long it's going to take, so don't worry. Bye!"

"Bye!" Everyone else called to her.

Once Gabriella turned the corner her and Troy half jogged away from the building. Once they felt that they were far enough away they both laughed and began to walk normal.

"It worked!" Gabriella beamed at him.

"Of course it worked, it was a brilliant plan."

"That it was," Gabriella agreed.

They both walked along without actually saying where they were going. Their feet automatically headed toward the Smoothie Lounge.

"I'm really glad we're doing this." Gabriella said.

"Me too. After today, I think we deserve it. So are we going to sing?"

After a few second Gabriella responded, "Yeah, I think tonight I have the courage. I think doing what I did today, made me feel brave."

"And I'll be by your side the whole time," Troy smiled.

"I will. So what are we going to sing?"

"Oh, I hadn't thought about that. Hmmm," Troy rubbed his chin to imitate thinking deeply, "I say we go up and tell them to put whatever song they want to on and then we'll sing that."

"Are you serious?!" Gabriella asked, shocked, "That's so scary! They could pick anything!"

"That's what happened last time. At least this time it's our choice to go up at all."

After a few more minutes of debating, Troy finally convinced Gabriella.

Half an hour later they were headed to the front of the Smoothie Lounge. Gabriella looked at Troy with fear in her eyes. He simply looked back and smiled at her.

"It'll be ok Gabs. We're singing together. If you hate it, we never have to do it again. If you want to leave the stage in the middle of the song though, make sure you take me with you."

"Ha-ha, very funny Troy." Gabriella flashed him a small smile…she still was not convinced.

The name of the song then popped onto the screen, and the music began playing.

"_I can show you the world_

_Shining, shimmering, splendid_

_Tell me Princess now_

_When did you last let your heart decide_

_I can open your eyes_

_Take you wonder by wonder"_

Troy's voice sang out the familiar Aladdin song. Gabriella smiled, it really is just like kindergarten with him, she thought to herself. She then turned to look at him. He was already looking at her. They stayed there, looking deep into each others eyes as Gabriella joined in.

"_A whole new world_

_A dazzling place I never new_

_But now from way up here_

_It's crystal clear_

_That now I'm in a whole new world with you"_

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_There ya go:-) Hope you liked it and that it was worth the wait!_

_I also wanted to start doing something else...called **"Author's Recommends"** I thought that I could recommend one story each time I update that I really like/ liked because if you like my story, you'll probably like other ones that i've read...do you want me to do it?_

_So this week... Author Recommends... _**Searching For What Was Missing **by taywrites _check it out! It's finished and I LOVED it!_


	12. Quizes: Troy & Gabriella

_Hey Guys! Ok so I had this idea that before I continue on with the story, I'd do these things for the characters. They're the questionaires that people put in their profiles and stuff. You don't have to read them if you don't want to, but they'll give you a little more info on the Characters. I'm starting with the obvious two, but tell me if you want me to do the rest!_

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_

**Basics**

Time Now: 12:45A

Name: _Troy Izaac Bolton_

Age: 18

Birthday: 2/20

Gender: Male

Siblings: 2

Grade: College Freshman…you know

Residence: The best dorm on USC's campus

B/F or G/F: No…

Friends: Too many to count.

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Brown? Blonde? Something in between

Eye Color: Blue

Weight: 180

Height: 5' 10" -calm down, I'm growing alright!

Are You A Virgin: Yep

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: Umm…let's not count HS in that…so none

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: both

**Favorites**

Food: Chinese!

Color: Blue -don't tell Chad, he still thinks it's red

Number: 14

Age: didn't you already ask this?

State: NM or CA…

Month: who has a favorite month?!

Day Of Week: Thursday…I know…weird

Place To Be: The beach or the basketball court or…

Sport: Are you seriously asking me this?

Guys Name: Troy? Duh

Girls Name: Ga---nevermind

Animal: My Dog

Sports Team: The one I'm on

Clothing Brand: I'm a guy…come on now

Shoe Brand: we've been over this

Band: Five Times August ... Again, good thing Chad isn't going to see this

Singer: Brad Skitmas

Book: Albert Einstein's Biography...A Look Inside His Mind - Do you know how smart that man was? I think I want to make all of the high schools that take my Math classes to read it

Movie(s): Hoosiers

TV Show (s): Does Sports Center highlights count?

Soda: Mountain Dew…Code Red of course

Season: Winter…it's basketball season or Summer…it's the season of freedom

Ice Cream: Vanilla with strawberry stuff

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Neither

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: Movie

Books/Magazines: Book…shocking, I know

Blonde/Brunette: Brunette

Blue/Green: Green…blue's my favorite color, I know…I have my reasons

Red/Pink: Red

Black/White: White

Basketball/Football: Basketball

Tall/Short: Who even knows what that means?

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: Honestly? Who comes up with these things?

Flew In An Airplane: Yep

Gone Skydiving: Me and Chad tried to once…the idea got shot down by not only all of our parents, but 4 of our coaches too...we were on a few summer teams at the time.

Skinny-Dipped: Uh…no

Peed Your Pants(besides when you were little): That's sick dude

Had An Alein Encounter: Pretending I didn't read that...

Been Bit By A Dog: No, I'm lovable. All dog's love me

Drank Alcohol: Nah…too much else to do to do that.

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**Basics**

Time Now: 6:00 PM

Name: _Gabriella Eve Montez  
_

Age: 18

Birthday: May 22nd

Gender: Female

Siblings: 3… 2 older brothers and a younger sister

Grade: Freshman in College

Residence: I'd rather not say online

B/F or G/F: Not as of recently…

Friends: The best I could ever ask for

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Dark Brown

Eye Color: Green

Weight: 120

Height: 5' 5" -I know I'm short

Nationality: A little Mexican, and then a little of this and a little of that

Are You A Virgin: Yes, and proud of it

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: 1 (unless you count elementary school...then 3. Hehe.)

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: Yes… my ex-boyfriend...i've never had a foot-popping kiss though...you know, like the one from Princess Diaries?

**Favorites**

Food: Chinese!

Color: Turquoise

Number: 8

Age: Hmm…I think I'm going to love being 18

State: California!

Month: May! It's my birthday and now it'll be the start of summer vacation too!

Day Of Week: Most recently…Thursday

Place To Be: With people I love and that love me

Sport: Honestly? Basketball. No one would ever know it though…I've never actually gone to a game. I used to play in the backyard with my brothers a lot though.

Guys Name: Marcus or Kyle…they're my brothers

Girls Name: Isabella … that's my sister

Animal: Cheetah

Sports Team: I don't really have one…North Dakota doesn't have too many sports teams. If you asked my brothers though, I'd be a Philadelphia Eagles fan, along with a Chicago Cubs fan, and then for basketball...I would decide on who has the best talent each year. Yeah...sometimes they put words into my mouth.

Clothing Brand: Well, I love H&M!

Shoe Brand: American Eagle!

Band: 5 Times August…it's so soothing

Singer: Taylor Swift-have you heard her lyrics?

Book: I could NEVER pick just one!

Movie(s): Well let's see…Raise Your Voice, The Break Up, The Holiday, The GreatestGame Ever Played, Newsies, Beaches, Glory Road, Gone With The Wind…a lot more of the classics...but some of the new ones have a place in my heart.

TV Show (s): Gilmore Girls, October Road, American Idol

Soda: Mountain Dew

Season: Summer!

Ice Cream: Mint Chocolate Chip!

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Pepsi

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: Hmm…that's tough, but movies

Books/Magazines: Books!

Blonde/Brunette: Depends...probably dirty blonde though. I like a beach look

Blue/Green: Blue

Red/Pink: Red

Black/White: White - wow, that was patriotic of me

Basketball/Football: Basketball

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: Yes, I have a very cute one of my own in fact!

Flew In An Airplane: Yes, it's really scary though

Gone Skydiving: No way!

Skinny-Dipped: I'll pass

Peed Your Pants (besides when you were little): No

Been Bit By A Dog: Aw! No! That would have been sad.

Drank Alcohol: Nope! Well except for like a toast for a wedding or something. Do you know how bad really drinking is for your body? Just ask Taylor or Luke and you'll NEVER want to do it. Trust me.

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_ There's the first two...do you want more or should i pass? Don't worry...I'm working on the next chapter too...these are just quick, easy, fun little extras. _


	13. The Weeks Wore On

_Here's the next Chapter! _

_ The general consensus was that you liked the quizzes, but you wanted another chapter! So from now on, if I put a chapter up during the day, I'll try to put up some quizzes that night. That way you're getting both :-)_

_Disclaimer: The same as the last 12 chapters. _

_ Enjoy!_

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**-Chapter 13-**

_-The Weeks Wore On-  
_

As Troy and Gabriella walked out of _their_ Smoothie Lounge, they knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that their tradition would carry on for the rest of the year.

"That was almost as great as the first time!" Troy exclaimed as they burst through the door of the Smoothie Lounge an hour later.

The warm California air hit them as they stepped out of the air conditioned lounge. Gabriella did a twirl in the street to show her appreciation.

"I know! Troy, thank you," She said with sincerity.

"Don't thank me Gabs, you got up there too."

"Yeah, but I never would have if it weren't for you. I don't know how you can stay so calm."

"Trust me, I'm not always as calm as I seem. That's something that I've learned over the years…" Troy answered as they stood together in the middle of the road.

"Well then TIBS...you are a very good actor!" Gabriella answered, putting her arm through his and guiding him back to the sidewalk.

"I know," Troy joked as he cocked his head and brushed his should off.

"You did not just do that."

"Do what?"

"Brush your shoulder off! That was such a Chad thing to do!"

They both began laughing as they continued to make their way across campus. They reached the front of their dorm only half an hour later and Troy turned to Gabriella.

"Are we back already?"

"Do you want to be back?" She asked him with a sly smile.

"No," He stated, starting to catching on, "You're right, I think we got lost…Our dorm is all the way over there isn't it?" He asked while pointing off in some meaningless direction.

"My thoughts exactly," Gabriella answered happily.

And so they continued walking all around USC's campus. They wondered around aimlessly, simply enjoying each others company every second of the evening.

After another two hours together they found themselves once again standing in front of their dorms.

"I guess we better go in." Troy said sadly, looking at Gabriella.

She suddenly turned to him and looked directly into his deep eyes. They were standing only inches apart, but both felt very comfortable with the other so close.

"Troy, thank you. Thank you for everything. You truly help me escape the rest of the world…and tonight, that's exactly what I needed."

"Gabriella, you let me escape the rest of the world too."

She smiled gently, but kept her gaze steady at him. "Tibs, you…and the rest of our friends here…you guys gave me the strength that I needed…" She took a deep breath before continuing, "We have only been at school for a little while…and I know that we've had a friendship longer than that…but the comfort and strength that I have gotten over the last few weeks gave me the courage to break something off that I have been wanting to for almost two years. I'm not saying it was easy, but with you guys there, I knew that I could do it. I knew that I would still have friends to count on afterwards"

Troy stepped in and wrapped his arms around Gabriella. He held her close for a minute before speaking. He loved having her in his arms. All Troy wanted to do was make Gabriella feel safe and he could feel by how she relaxed into his hug, with her arms bent at the elbows and hands close to her face, that he truly did.

"Gabs…I'm so proud of you. I know that it isn't in you to hurt other people. You did something today that was necessary; something that in the long run, will be good for both you _and_ him. And you are right. I am here for you, and I will be, whenever you need me."

"I know," Gabriella stated as she took a step backwards out of the hug, "You're such a good guy Troy."

He gave her a smile to say thank you and they both turned to walk toward the building. After a few short steps in content silence, Troy and Gabriella walked into the lobby. They turned to each other simultaneously and grinned. With that they both took off toward the elevator at a half jog. Troy was a few steps ahead of Gabriella when-

"Troy wait!" Gabriella called trying as hard as possible to sound serious.

He turned around with concern on his face and then he watched her dart passed him and hit the elevator button.

"Beat you!" She smiled up at him.

"Oh you are such a cheater!"

"Nope, you are just a sore loser." Gabriella countered with a smug smile as they stepped into the elevator.

They stopped on Gabriella's floor and she went to step out.

"Night Tibs! Thanks so much for a great night…again."

"Night Gabs…and right back at you."

As the door closed Troy could feel his happiness swell all throughout his body. He had had the perfect night. The only thing that had put a damper on his entire day was the simple fact that Gabriella had cried, and although he knew going out helped her, he knew that beneath that tough exterior she was still hurting and feeling guilty for what she had done.

Troy sighed to himself, vowing to make sure she knew she was right in the situation whenever it came up, as he opened the door to his dorm room.

He was greeted by a loud song and his friends booming voices.

"Hey Troy! What's up man?" Chad called to him from the couch.

Taylor and Luke were both standing up, fake guitars in hand, rocking out to "Stairway to Heaven." Chad and Lexie were both lounging on separate couches enjoying the entertainment.

"Nothing much, I see we pulled out Guitar Hero again?" Troy questioned, not wanting any of them to ask questions about where he had been.

"You know it! Tay's really good Troy! Honestly, check it out, she's beating Luke!"

"Oh be quiet, I'm not _that_ good." Taylor said with a smile on her face while she swung the guitar into the air putting herself into "Rock Out".

No one else spoke until the song ended…Taylor beating Luke 45,283 to 29,869.

"Taylor you destroyed him!" Lexie yelled

"I used to play at home with my younger brother all the time." Taylor explained as she held up the guitar in a gesture to ask who was next.

"I'll take a go," Troy said as he walked between the couches to get the guitar from Taylor, "It's a good thing she didn't come to our video game wars in High School Chad…she might have taken your title!"

"Oh please," Chad brushed off, grabbing the other guitar from Luke, "No one can take my title as…_Ultimate Guitar Hero_"

"You wanna bet?"

"Troy Bolton…you have only beaten me one time and I still say it was because you told your stupid dog to attack me while we were playing."

The boys played their song and, as expected, Chad beat Troy…not destroyed…but definitely beat. A few other matches took place along with teasing, laughing, and complimenting each others tactics at playing.

During the fourth song, they heard the door open again. Lexie, who was sitting down after losing to Troy, was the first to look up.

"Gabi! I guess you got our note?"

"Hey guys! Yeah, Lex…how could I miss it? It was taped to my computer screen."

"That was my idea!" Taylor called from the other couch.

Gabriella walked the rest of the way in and sat down on the couch next to Lexie. She smiled over at Troy who immediately heard his cell phone beep and picked it up.

_Guess that wasn't good night after all, huh?_

He smiled back at her after reading the text and mouthed "Guess not." Somehow he felt good about having a secret that was just between the two of them.

The night continued on until Luke finally mentioned the time and the fact that they all had class in the morning. After a few "necessary" re-matches (mostly between Taylor and the guys), the three girls left the apartment and made their way down to their own.

And so the Thursday's continued on. Lexie's soccer schedule worked out that she had games every Thursday evening and so all of the rituals started that night continued on.

Although it was more difficult to sneak away the next week, both Troy and Gabriella came up with convincing excuses to leave the group for multiple hours. Gabriella's group project turned into a "study group" that met every Thursday night…'it was the only night that worked for everyone so she simply _couldn't_ get out of it.' While Troy had a mandatory math lab that he couldn't miss because after all…it _was_ his major.

_Summer's_ became their consistent diner…so much so that soon they would come in and she would already have all of their orders sitting in the L-shaped booth for them. She always asked how Lexie's game went and without fail she always ended up bringing Scottie & Dylan a free dessert.

As the weeks wore into the beginning of October, the group of nine still seemed inseparable. Sure, they each had their separate activities, but without fail, they always found time to hang out with each other and weekends always brought new adventures. The girls always had "Girl Day" on Sundays and so in turn, the boys (a little indignant at being told they couldn't come along) had a "Guys day".

"But _why_ can't we come? I love the zoo!" Chad asked one Sunday in particular.

"Chad…as fun as it would be to have you at the zoo…I mean, I can just see you now with the-" Taylor began, but was cut off.

"BUT, we need girl time!" Gabriella stated before Taylor got side tracked, and almost convinced to let the guys come along, by Chad _once again_. "We love you all, but we just do."

"I still don't think it's fair." Chad stated with his arms crossed like a small child.

Lexie, Taylor, and Gabriella somehow always found new things to do…whether it be going for a drive around LA, trying to get into new clubs, finding small parks to hang out at, or going to the zoo…they were _always_ creative with their day.

The guys on the other hand simply took the day to do absolutely nothing…except maybe sit and play video games for hours upon hours.

The first week into October, the whole gang was sitting in _Summer's_ after yet another win by USC's girls soccer team (They were now 7 and 1).

"So what is everyone up to for Fall Break?" Cameron asked as he took his designated seat in front of his already prepared food.

"Staying here." Taylor and Gabriella answered simultaneously.

"North Dakota is just too far to go for just four days. I would spend more time driving there than I would spend actually being at home."

"Ditto" Luke agreed with a nod, taking a bit of his Stromboli.

"Same thing with Albuquerque for me," Taylor answered, "Are you two going home?"

"We thought about going home…like flying instead…but it's just too much for such a short time." Chad answered for both of them.

"Yeah, we're just going to be chill, and kick it here."

Everyone laughed at Troy's choice of words.

"I think you've been in Cali a little too long T" Lexie said what they were all thinking.

"Yeah, that, or you've just been hanging out with Chad too long." Gabriella added.

"Hey!" Chad exclaimed pretending to be angry while everyone laughed, "_Anyway!_ What are the rest of you guys doing?"

"Well, I'm going home. San Francisco isn't that far away." Cameron explained.

"Ditto for me," Dylan added, "My mom would get _so_ mad if I didn't."

"I'm headed back to good ole San Diego. I told my coach I'd help him out with a clinic over break." Scottie added.

"Well you all already know that I'll be-"

Lexie was cut off by the ringing of her cell phone. She flipped it open to see that it was Zoe.

"Hello?" Lexie answered, sticking a finger in the air to signify to her friends that she'd just be a minute, "Wait…seriously? Oh man, I was really looking forward to playing those games too!" Lexie continued, obviously trying to hide the huge smile that was on her face, "K, thanks for letting me know Zoe – Yep, I'll talk to you later – Bye!"

"What's up Lex?" Cameron asked loving how happy his friend looked.

"Well…that just changed my answer to the question and hopefully," Lexie started, dialing another number on her phone, "I'll be right back guys." Lexie scooted out of the booth past her friends and stood outside the diner's front door.

"Oh well…that explains it." Scottie said sarcastically to everyone's confused faces.

"I wonder what games were cancelled," Troy put in thoughtfully.

"Well, she didn't seem too torn up about it, did she?" Taylor added.

They all laughed and with a few shrugs of their shoulders continued eating. Lexie walked back into the diner with a huge grin on her face.

"Guys, guess what?!" Lexie said while Scottie and Cameron got out of the booth again to let her back into her spot.

"What?"

"That was Zoe on the phone at first…you know the tournament that I was supposed to have over fall break?" All eight of them nodded their heads before she continued, "Well, she said that it got cancelled! We're not sure why yet, but the other teams couldn't make it for some reason. Something about both of their school administrators not wanting them to keep students for…well I don't really know. But anyway, that means I don't have to stay here!"

"Lex, that's awesome! You've wanted to go home so bad. It'll be so nice to get out of the dorm and into a real home again." Gabriella said.

"I know, but the best part is…the second phone call…that was to my parents. They said that I should invite any of my friends that are staying here home for break!"

Gabriella and Taylor immediately smiled and started cheering. The three girls went into hypothetical ideas of what they could do for their break at Huntington Beach.

"Great," Chad muttered, "Now we'll be stuck here all by ourselves. What am I supposed to do with just these two for all of break?" He asked no one in particular while he pointed at Troy and Luke with his thumbs.

"Oh, so you don't consider yourselves my friends?" Lexie asked.

"Well…I just assumed that you meant-"

"No way!" Lexie exclaimed, almost choking on her glass of Gatorade, "All three of you are invited too, and you three…but I know you're all busy already."

And so the plans for their first fall break began with a bang.

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_There ya have it!  
_

_Author Recommends: **Summer Love**** by Marebear11**_


	14. Quizes: Lexie & Luke

_Hey! I'M SORRY!!! I know I said that I would put this up almost a week ago, but once again, life happened. The good news is that the next chapter is almost done too:-) _

_ So here's two more quizzes...these ones are for two people that we don't know very well yet._

_Oh, and to answer questions, these are just random quizzes that it's like, the characters took them online or something. I just thought it'd be fun to give some background.  
_

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****Basics**

Time Now: 9:00p

Name: Alexis McQue

Age: 18

Birthday: January 21st

Gender: Female

Siblings: Nope, I always wished I had some though :-/

Grade: College!

Residence: With two of the best girls ever

B/F or G/F: Nada

Friends: The best! Some are at home and others are at College

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Blonde! I'm a beach baby!

Eye Color: blue

Weight: I'm a girl…I plead the 5th!

Height: 5'6"

Are You A Virgin: Yep

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: 4

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: Both

**Favorites**

Food: Hmmm…Mexican!

Color: Blue or Pink

Number: 26! That's my soccer #!

Age: 18…still

State: Cali!!!

Month: Hmm…April.

Day Of Week: Saturdays!

Place To Be: Wherever I am at any moment

Sport: Soccer…duh

Guys Name: Hmm…Lucas Scott (One Tree Hill anyone?!)

Girls Name: Isabella

Animal: Polar Bear

Sports Team: USC Girls soccer! lol

Clothing Brand: I'm an Old Navy girl

Shoe Brand: Adidas

Band: Well…I love the All-American Rejects, but I'm usually up for almost anyone

Singer: Brad Skitmas

Book: Pride & Prejudice

Movie(s): Chick Flicks & Sports movies…Ones that combine the two are the best though! AKA "She's The Man" and "Love & Basketball"

TV Show (s): One Tree Hill!

Season: Summer

Ice Cream: Peanut Butter & Chocolate

Candy: Hmmm…that's hard…Snickers I guess

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Coke

Chicken/Beef: Chicken

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: Movie

Books/Magazines: Mags

Blonde/Brunette: idk?

Blue/Green: Blue

Red/Pink: Pink

Black/White: White

Basketball/Football: Football…don't tell the guys!

Tall/Short: Tall

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: Yep

Flew In An Airplane: Yep

Gone Skydiving: Nope

Skinny-Dipped: Nope, my friends tried to get me to once though

Peed Your Pants (besides when you were little): lol, no!

Had An Alein Encounter: Uh…no

Been Bit By A Dog: No!

Drank Alcohol: Yeah…but not on purpose. I was at a party and someone put some in my drink.

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**Basics**

Time Now: 6:35p

Name: Luke MacAdangdang

Age: 19

Birthday: June 27th

Gender: Male

Siblings: Yeah… 3 older brothers & 2 younger sisters

Grade: College

B/F or G/F: No...Still waiting for the perfect girl

Friends: Yes? Am I supposed to name them? I'll pass and just say that I do have friends.

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Brown

Height: 6'

Are You A Virgin: Yes, hello...i haven't even kissed a girl yet!

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: None

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: No…

**Favorites**

Food: Mac & Cheese

Color: Green

Number: 5

State: California, that's why I moved here

Month: June

Day Of Week: Friday

Place To Be: There's a few at the moment

Sport: Basketball-I used to play at home w/my siblings a lot.

Guys Name: Um…That's weird. I don't have one.

Girls Name: Hannah Elizabeth

Animal: Golden Retriever

Sports Team: Philadelphia 76ers

Clothing Brand: I'm not sure. I guess Nike

Shoe Brand: Nike or Adidas I guess

Band: Rascal Flatts

Singer: Tim McGraw

Book: Murder Mysteries

TV Show (s): CSI…Hero's…Lost.

Soda: Cream

Season: Fall

Ice Cream: Vanilla

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Pepsi

Chicken/Beef: Beef

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: TV

Books/Magazines: Depends

Blonde/Brunette: Blonde

Blue/Green: Green

Red/Pink: Red

Black/White: White

Basketball/Football: Basketball

Tall/Short: Tall?

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: No! That was sarcasm in case you were wondering.

Flew In An Airplane: Actually…no. For real this time though

Gone Skydiving: Yeah! It was me and my oldest brother! It was absolutely amazing, but my mom almost killed us for it!

Skinny-Dipped: Nope

Peed Your Pants(besides when you were little): No, and I don't really plan on it either

Been Bit By A Dog: Yes, no big deal though, it was just a little nip

Drank Alcohol: No

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_There ya go! Oh yeah...go check out my profile...I put a link in it to a photo album that I made for this story. I'll be updating it randomly, but I'll always put a little note in it like this if I do so :-) _


	15. Nothing Like Road Trips

_Oh yeah…Tibs is a nickname…It's his initials. Troy Izaac Bolton. Sorry I didn't explain that!_

_Shouts to _**HSMandChelseaFCfan**, blueprincess972, **src13**, _KKK-Double-KaeKae_ (of course!), **AngelicAmi**, ZacEfronIsHot, **HelloKittyLuver**, LaurFoSho, **TigerLilly88**, rockerchik97, **ElSalvadoran Chica**, and havefunwithit292. _You guys are all amazing and this chapter is truly dedicated to you!_

_Normal disclaimer, HSM characters & beginning plot are not mine. Original characters and this plot are mine. lol  
_

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**-Chapter 14-**

_- Nothing Like Road Trips -_

Finally it was the Wednesday before break. Freshman seminar had let out a half hour ago, Cameron, Dylan, and Scottie were already on their separate ways home and the other six friends were in the parking lot heading to their cars.

"So, who's coming in the Jeep?!" Chad asked excitedly as they all made their ways through the parking lot, suitcases (and gym bags) in hand.

"I am!" Gabriella exclaimed, "I love jeeps!"

"We know," everyone responded as they laughed.

It had become custom for Gabriella to state her love of Chad's vehicle every time she rode in it. Chad loved it, and always had a look of pride on his face when she said it. The others however simply rolled their eyes and laughed.

"I'll be your third…we can't go on a road trip and not be together." Troy stated matter-of-factly.

"My thoughts exactly dude. Gabi, get ready for a good time…you're riding with the kings of road trips right here. Troy and I have been going on road trips together since freshman year!"

"Oh I'm thrilled!" Gabriella replied sarcastically, earning her dirty looks from both Chad and Troy.

"Was that sarcasm Ms. Montez?" Troy asked with narrowed eyes and a smirk on his face.

"Tibs, don't you dare!" Gabriella yelled as she started running for Chad's jeep. Troy followed close behind.

"They're ridiculous." Taylor stated as the four others lagged behind.

"I know!" Chad agreed wholeheartedly.

Luke and Lexie exchanged a significant look and both burst out laughing.

"Come on, let's go. I'm already hungry and we have an hour road trip." Luke said, deterring any questions about his and Lexie's laughing.

Finally, they all piled into the vehicles. Chad was driving his Jeep, Troy was in the front seat, and Gabriella was in the middle of the back seat. Chad already had his top down for their highway pleasures, and Gabriella's hair was up in a loose pony-tail.

Lexie was the other driver, seeing as how they _were_ going to her house. She jumped in the driver seat of her pink, older, box convertible car. Taylor had called shotgun right after it was decided that she would be in Lexie's car. Luke took the back, spreading his legs across both seats due to the small amount leg room.

"You know Tay, if I wasn't such a nice guy, I'd probably make you switch with me."

Taylor laughed as she turned around and then laughed harder at seeing him. Even with his legs on the seat, they still had to be bent at the knees. He looked sort of like a jack-in-the-box ready to pop.

"Luke, I'm sorry! Here…" Taylor began as she started to get out of the car, "We can switch."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. It may look like there's more room up front, but there isn't. I just have a really small car." Lexie explained.

With that, Taylor got back in the car and they were finally off.

"So, what are we listening to?" Lexie wondered as she drove onto the highway.

"Oh! Chad and I made a _Road trip Mix_ so that we could all listen to the same music." Taylor stated handing the CD to the front.

With that, they popped it in and began discussing what they were going to do all break. Lexie kept rather quiet at points and simply pretended to be day dreaming. She couldn't wait to see her friend's faces when they saw her house.

Lexie looked in her rear view mirror and her silence was shattered by her loud laughter. Troy and Chad were sitting in the front seat of the car, singing along to the music and dancing.

"Come on Gabi! You know you want to join us!" Chad laughed as the song ended.

Gabriella was sitting in the back with a huge smile on her face. There was just something about hearing her two friends and watching them that made her feel even more content than she already had.

"I think I'll just sit here and take in the scenery." Gabriella smiled at them.

"Suit yourself, but you know you'll give in! What shall we do next Troy?"

"Well I don't know Chad," Troy responded in a British accent, "I say we go for a Timberlake song."

"Oh, I'm so ahead of you!" Chad skipped a few songs on the CD and finally landed on Sexy Back.

The two boys lip synced the entire song for Gabriella, being as dramatic as possible.

The rest of the car ride continued on pretty much the same for both cars. Gabriella received a few calls from the other car, her friends dying laughing at watching the other boys from their car and wanting to know what song they had on so that they could fully enjoy the Troy & Chad show. Before they all knew it, the hour road trip had already passed.

"We're here!" Lexie announced as she pulled into the parking lot of a huge seven-story hotel.

Although they were extremely confused Luke and Taylor got out of the car without a word. Neither of them wanted to ask Lexie if she lived at a hotel and silently wondered how they were all supposed to fit into one hotel room if she did. But leave it up to…

"Are we lost Lex?" Troy asked as he hopped out of the Jeep without opening the door.

"Nope," she replied simply as she walked towards the hotel.

"You live in a hotel?" Chad asked aloud with a tone of disbelief and disappointment.

Everyone else was quiet, obviously thinking that his question was rude, but Lexie just laughed.

"No, I don't live here! My parents are here though, so I wanted to stop in and say hi to everyone before we went to my house."

With that they walked into the hotel. When they reached the door it was automatically opened for them.

"Good afternoon Ms. McQue! Lovely to see you back!" A tall, middle-aged man greeted, "And welcome to _California Paradise_" He add to the other five.

"Hi Alan!" Lexie greeted, giving the man a hug, "It's great to be back!"

The other five glanced at each other all completely confused at the encounter between their friend and the bell hop.

"Did I miss something?" Chad whispered to Taylor from the back of the group as they kept walking, each just waving at Alan.

The hotel was absolutely gorgeous. There was a set of ballroom type stairs opening up to the second floor, tropical plants were scattered all around the spacious lobby, with green and blue furniture mixed in. A gorgeous crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling and they could hear the sound of a waterfall in the distance.

"I think so, but don't worry; whatever you missed…I definitely missed too."

"Alright well at least it's not just-" Chad started, but was cut off.

"ALEXIS!" A woman behind the front desk gushed, "It is so good to see you back! This place has definitely missed you hunny."

She reached behind the counter and pulled out a blue and pink soccer ball, getting ready to throw it to Lexie.

"Oh, no thanks Janice. We're just here to find my mom and dad to say hi." Lexie began while walking over to the desk. She gave the woman a big hug and then continued, "It's so good to see you too. I have missed this place so much! Oh, and these are my friends, Taylor, Chad, Troy, Gabriella, and Luke. They all go to USC with me. Guys, this is Janice, she has been a friend of our family since I was…"

"…still in diapers!" The dirty blonde, middle-aged woman finished for her.

"Hi?!" They all replied, trying to sound nonchalant and failing miserably.

Lexie laughed to herself at their confusion, but turned back to Janice.

"Do you know where mom and dad are?"

"Yes…they are upstairs greeting one of our guests!" She answered with a huge, sly grin.

"Are you serious?! Who's here?!" Lexie asked, unable to hide her excitement.

"I don't get it. Why is she so excited that her parents are greeting one of the people staying here? And why would they do that anyway?" Troy whispered to Gabriella, hoping she would know the answer.

"Honestly Troy…I have _no_ idea. I'm just as confused as you are," then she looked at him with a grin and added, "There's a first!"

Troy shook his head in agreement and then what she said dawned on him, "HEY!"

Gabriella giggled, and Chad and Taylor both sent them looks that immediately told them to be quiet.

Janice had whispered the answer to Lexie's question to which Lexie squealed extremely loud, but didn't let anyone else in on the secret.

"Hey Lex, there's your parents," Luke called.

Mr. and Mrs. McQue were walking down the large, ballroom type steps back into the lobby from the second floor. The other five had gotten to know Lexie's parents over the last few weeks, due to them coming up to USC for a few of her games.

"Mom, Dad!" Lexie cried as she ran up to them and engulfed each of her parents in a hug.

The others followed suit, the girls hugged both parents while the guys gave Mrs. McQue a hug and followed with a handshake for Mr. McQue.

"It's so good to see you all again! You have no idea how excited we are to have you here." Mrs. McQue greeted them, "Have you guys gone to the house yet?" Mrs. McQue addressed the question to her daughter.

"Not yet mom. Would it be okay if we went to the house and then I gave them a tour of the hotel?"

"Absolutely! We're going to have to stay here for awhile longer, but we'll be back for dinner."

"Great! Come on guys!" Lexie yelled as she headed back out to their cars.

Troy was helping Gabriella back into the jeep when they noticed that Lexie wasn't getting back into the car. She was actually getting her bag from it instead.

"We don't have to drive to the house…Just grab your bags."

Taylor, Luke, Chad, Gabriella, and Troy simply shrugged and grabbed their bags. At this point they had given up trying to figure out what was going on.

Lexie then led the way back into the hotel. They walked the whole way through the lobby, out the back door, through a huge courtyard with an absolutely enormous pool. The pool had a waterfall at one end and a waterslide coming around the side of it. Palm trees and lounge chairs were spread out all over they yard. Lexie walked through like it was no big deal, waving and smiling at all of the workers as she went. The others gaped at their surroundings. The hotel was definitely high class.

They walked out the gate behind the courtyard, down a few stairs, and were automatically on the beach. There were a few lounge chairs, some umbrellas, a hammock hut, and two small boats. It was obviously a private beach, as there were not too many people. All six of them stood lined up, just looking out at the ocean.

"It's amazing." Taylor gawked quietly.

"I feel like I'm at home." Gabriella said.

"I am home." Lexie smiled.

"I think I could stand here forever." Troy said.

"I've never loved the beach so much." Luke added in awe.

"Can we go in?!" Chad yelled, making everyone jump.

"CHAD!" They all yelled back at him, for both scaring them and ruining their moment of peace and serenity.

"What?!"

He got an eye roll from Taylor as she said, "Nothing. You just know how to ruin a moment. Anyway, so where's your house Lex?"

"Yeah, the sooner we get there, the sooner we can go in!"

They were all staring at Lexie in anticipation when she smiled and pointed out to the ocean.

"I live there!"

"You live in the ocean?" Chad asked, not bothering to look exactly where her finger had pointed.

"No! Out there…see that island?"

"Yeah…"

"_That's_ where I live."

At that exact moment the jaws of five college teenagers dropped simultaneously. They were staring out at a small island with palm trees all over it. Just beyond the dense trees the peak of a house was visible. All surrounding the island was the crystal clear blue water, and the waves gently lapped onto the shore of the small island.

"Lexie I don't…" Taylor began in awe, but wasn't able to get her thoughts together.

The other four simply nodded in agreement.

Lexie laughed, loving her friend's reactions and knowing that they were going to have the time of a lifetime for break.

"You see guys, my parents own _California Paradise_. They started it from scratch. We had lived a little further away, not on the beach or anything, but then it started to grow. It used to just be a little bed and breakfast, but it just grew for them and they put additions on whenever they could. Once it got this big," She gestured to the hotel behind them, "We had to be closer. We were going to build a place right next door, but then the island out there went on sale and my parents had always dreamed of owning their own island. So…they bought it. It was close enough that if they were really needed at the hotel, they could come, but it's also a sweet escape for us."

"Lex, that's amazing!" Gabriella gushed as realization began to sweep over each of them.

"Yeah really. Lexie, youare amazing."

"Why Tay, I didn't do anything?"

"Because…you are an only child whose parents own a HUGE hotel and you have your own island! How in the world are you not a stuck up brat?"

Once again Lexie just laughed, "For the reason I just told you. I didn't do anything to get all this. There would be absolutely no reason for me to be stuck up. I'm really blessed to have the parents that I do, and they are great to me, but that's more than just giving me stuff. They taught me an incredible work ethic and they don't just give me everything I want…I earn it."

The three boys just looked at each other.

"Well…if they were my parents, I think I'd _want_ them to just give me everything!" Chad finally burst out. He had held it in for at least 5 seconds.

"Why?" Gabriella questioned, "So you could be a male version of Brooke?"

All six of them started laughing, including Chad, at his own expense.

"Alright, alright…Point taken."

"Come on guys, we can all fit in my boat. I want to show you guys around the island!"

With that they all made their way towards the two small boats. As they walked, Troy and Gabriella ended up in front of the group.

Lexie and Luke trailed closely behind and Taylor and Chad brought up the rear, laughing, teasing, and fighting.

Troy grabbed Gabriella's bag from her right hand and threw it over his right shoulder, earning him a gorgeous Gabriella smile and a thank you. He then draped his left arm around her shoulder.

"I love having you around Gabs."

"Oh yeah? Why's that?" She asked looking up at him.

"Because…then I have someone to pick on Chad with."

Gabriella giggled, "In case you hadn't noticed Tibs…everyone picks on Chad!"

"Yeah…but I like the way you do." He countered with a sly smile.

Gabriella just rolled her eyes.

Luke and Lexie looked at each other knowingly, rolled their eyes, and shook their heads.

"Really, do they have to be so obvious?" Luke asked.

Lexie laughed, "I have a feeling they do."

With that they had reached the boat and all began to climb in.

Together, the six friends, all smiling and content, sailed from the _California Paradise_ to their very own island paradise getaway.

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_There ya go! Can I just tell you that I am SO excited to write the next few chapters?! Lol. Oh, and there's new pictures on the photo album too (including some of the hotel!). The link's in my profile._

_REQUEST__…hey guys, so I was just wondering…I don't like asking for reviews, but if you are someone that reads my story…I'd REALLY love your feedback…even if you just do it once, I'd love to know what you think, like or dislike. I'd really like to grow as an author & that would help a LOT! Thanks & thank you SO much for continuing to read my story this far through!_

_Author Recommends: _**Crash Into You**_ by _**MineyMouse14**._ It's not done yet, but I'm really enjoying it so far & it's unique!_


	16. Quizes: Chad & Taylor

_Alright, and now for two of our other favorite characters!!!  
_

_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_

**Basics**

Time Now: 12:45A

Name: _Chad...best name ever!  
_

Age: 18

Birthday: 4/18

Gender: Male

Siblings: Yep

Grade: Psh, in college, you're too cool for grades!

Residence: USC apartment

B/F or G/F: Currently, no...but it shouldn't be too much longer before I have one again

Friends: Do you mean if I have any? Hello...I'm Chad Danforth!

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Black

Eye Color: Brown

Weight: 210

Height: 6' 1"

Are You A Virgin: I'm skipping this question

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: Hah...wait, I'm really supposed to count...well, I wouldn't really call them girlfriends, but I've dated...12 people. Relax...some were just a one time date!

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: uh...yeah!

**Favorites**

Food: Mac'n'Cheese!

Color: Wildcat Red baby!

Number: 8

Age: 18

State: I'm from the great state of New Mexico...currently chillin in the big Cali though

Month: January...that's when all the cool kids are born -just ask Tay!

Day Of Week: Uh...not really sure. Some day when I don't have school, homework, or a really hard practice...so...Sunday? Oh...but then the girls have "girls day" (yeah i know...it's so stupid!). Hmm...Saturday. Coaches usually don't kill you on a Saturday so it's just nice to play for fun.

Place To Be: On the court with my team or chillaxin with my friends

Sport: BASKETBALL...I've been known to play some baseball too. Really I can just play all sports...not to be cocky or anything...it's just a gift

Guys Name: Chad? Duh!

Girls Name: I don't know. I'll let you know when I name my first daughter

Animal: Troy's dog...i was never allowed to have one

Sports Team: USC Men's basketball team!!! But really I still have to say my East High Wildcats...there's nothing like winning a championship with your best friends.

Clothing Brand: Addidas

Shoe Brand: Addidas

Band: I don't know...I like hip hop/R&B stuff...

Singer: Rhianna!

Book: Michael Jordan's biography

Movie(s): Hoosiers (me and Troy used to watch that at least once a week!), Remember the Titans, Field of Dreams, Glory Road, Coach Carter, Love & Basketball, Gone in 60 Seconds (1 & 2), A Walk To Remember...don't you EVER let ANYone see that!

TV Show (s): ESPN

Soda: Mountain Dew…Code Red of course!

Season: Hm, that's tough. Either basketball season or summer...I'm really enjoying the fall too...I guess I'm just not that hard to please.

Ice Cream: chocolate chip cookie dough!

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Pepsi

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: Movie

Books/Magazines: Magazines

Blonde/Brunette: Brunette

Blue/Green: Blue

Red/Pink: Red ->Remember...Wildcat Red!

Black/White: White

Basketball/Football: Basketball

Tall/Short: Tall!

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: Yep

Flew In An Airplane: Yep

Gone Skydiving: Haha, me and Troy tried to once…to say the least, none of the adults in our lives at the time thought it was our best idea.

Skinny-Dipped: Hahaha...Chad Danforth does NOT skinny dip

Peed Your Pants(besides when you were little): Sick!

Had An Alein Encounter: Weird...no, but oddly enough people have asked me that before...

Been Bit By A Dog: Nope, why would a dog bit me?

Drank Alcohol: Nope, I'm too into sports to waste my time.

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**Basics**

Time Now: 9:00 AM

Name: _Taylor Ann McKessie  
_

Age: 18

Birthday: January 29th

Gender: Female

Siblings: 2 Older sisters, 1 Older brother, and 3 younger brothers...I have a big family

Grade: COLLEGE! I'm still SO excited!

Residence: I'd rather not say online

B/F or G/F: No

Friends: Do I have them? Yes!

**A Lil More Personal**

Hair Color: Black

Eye Color: Brown

Weight: Excuse me...I'm a girl and we do NOT disclose such information

Height: 5' 8"

Are You A Virgin: You know it

How Many B/F's or G/F's Have You Had: Umm...2

Have You Ever Been Kissed/Kissed Someone: Yeah...it wasn't too exciting though

**Favorites**

Food: Sushi!

Color: Sea Green

Number: 8

Age: 6...it was so care free

State: Oh my gosh I LOVE California! NM will always have a piece of me though

Month: January! That's when all the cool kids were born...just ask Chad :-P

Day Of Week: Hmm...I'd have to say Monday. It's nice to start off a fresh new week. Anything can happen.

Place To Be: I find peace in the library...you can just smell all the knowledge in there. I have a love for nature though too...so maybe laying outside under a star-lit sky...

Sport: Haha...does Guitar Hero count? Nah...if not that then probably baseball.

Guys Name: Hm, that's hard to say. I'm going to go with Chase Cameron

Girls Name: Hmm...Esperanza. It means Hope in spanish.

Animal: Horse

Sports Team: Albuquerque Isotopes!

Clothing Brand: That's difficult...I'm a mix and match kind of girl.

Shoe Brand: Payless! Have you seen their amazingness?

Band: Rascal Flatt's! Hello love.

Singer: Taylor Swift-Gabi got me addicted!

Book: Oprah's biography...or anything written by her

Movie(s): Beaches! It is me and my roommates movie! So sad, but amazing! I like others, but I don't feel like writing them.

TV Show (s): October Road, Hero's, and Gilmore Girls...their wit is incredible!

Soda: I'm a rootbeer kinda girl

Season: Summer!

Ice Cream: vanilla/strawberry swirl

**This Or That**

Pepsi/Coke: Pepsi

Cat/Dog: Dog

TV/Movies: Movies...unless it's a good series

Books/Magazines: Books. No question.

Blonde/Brunette: um...neither.

Blue/Green: Green

Red/Pink: Red - be true to your school :-)

Black/White: White

Basketball/Football: Basketball

**Have You Ever**

Drove A Car: Yes

Flew In An Airplane: Yes

Gone Skydiving: No...that would be really neat though

Skinny-Dipped: We...Taylor McKessie does NOT skinny dip

Peed Your Pants (besides when you were little): Hahaha...maybe once...

Been Bit By A Dog: Yes! My awful aunts stupid little thing

Drank Alcohol: No! Do you know how much that can damage your liver?

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_ Hahaha...these were my FAVORITE two to write so far! You can just have so much fun with them as characters!  
_


	17. Always New Adventures

_Normal disclaimer, HSM characters & beginning plot not mine. Original characters and this plot are mine._

_If anyone is still reading this...You are AMAZING! To all the people that have read & reviewed, I appreciate you and your feedback more than you know! This chapter (just like all of them!) is for you! _

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**-Chapter 15-**

_-- Always New Adventures –_

Lexie steered the boat around to the other side of the small island and pulled up on shore.

"Wow Lex, you're a pro at that!" Chad said, amazed.

"It's just a motor boat Chad and I've been driving it to and from this island for a few years now." She answered, jumping out of the boat, grabbing her bag, and heading up a small inclined path.

The other five followed suit, taking in their surroundings as they went.

"Gabriella," Luke began, "You do realize that nobody back in North Dakota would ever believe this-right?"

Gabriella laughed lightly, "Yeah, I definitely do. Speaking of North Dakota…Logan called me again last night." She added the last part in a whisper to him.

"Did you answer?" He asked.

"I-"

Gabriella's answer, however, was stopped abruptly as they turned a corner and a huge house came into view behind the lush green trees and bushes. They came into the backyard and a large pool sat a few steps up. Two floors were visible from the back, but a third was obviously even with the pool underneath. The house was a cream color with large stones set into it. Sliding glass doors and huge windows surrounded the entire house.

Chad looked over at his friends and without another thought grabbed Taylor's bag from her hand and swung it over his shoulder. He then reached for her left hand with his right and began to pull her along, while a huge smile spread across his face.

Taylor, in turn, grabbed Gabriella's hand and Chad pulled both of them up the stairs. The girls automatically read Chad's mind and Chad and Gabriella dropped the bags together at the top of the stairs.

Then, still holding hands, the three of them jumped into the water, fully clothed and laughing hysterically.

Troy followed suit, running behind them, and flipped into the pool.

Luke and Lexie glanced at each other from the edge of the pool before grabbing each others hands and jumping in together with a scream.

"This is the life!" Chad yelled as they all broke back to the surface.

None of the others could disagree.

"For once, Chad actually had a good idea," Troy commented through the laughter.

"Hey!" Chad defended, and then added with a smile, "That's right, you guys didn't even_ have _to follow me this time!"

"Excuse me?!" Taylor piped.

They all continued laughing as Chad swam over to Taylor. Once he was inches away from her, he spoke.

"That's right…The rest of them had a choice…but you…didn't!" He yelled the last word as he reached up his hands and went to dunk her under the water.

Taylor didn't go down without a fight and before they knew it the other four had joined in. It turned out to be an every man for himself (or herself of course) battle.

"Guys…as much fun as this is," Taylor began after about half an hour of their fooling around, "These clothes are starting to feel disgusting! I say we go change, see the rest of Lexie's place, and _then_ come back in."

"Agreed!" Lexie and Gabriella called while they shook their heads up and down.

With that the three girls began to swim toward the stairs with the guys following behind. They simply shrugged their shoulders however, since they had all already taken their shirts off and were now just swimming in shorts.

Lexie walked over to a small cabana and grabbed six towels so that they could dry off a little before going inside.

Once dried off the group stepped inside the large, luxurious home. As they walked through the sliding glass doors of the patio they stepped into a small area with a large family room right in front of them. The family room had a plush cream colored carpet with three couches, two love seats, two chairs, and a large screen television sitting around it in a circle. In the middle of the furniture and the television sat a glass coffee table with a bouquet of pink flowers on it.

To the right of the living room a set of stairs leading upward sat next to a large kitchen with a small island and bar stools around it.

To the left was a set of stairs leading downward and straight forward was a small hallway which led to more open archways with rooms behind them.

"This obviously is our living room and kitchen. Straight through here we have a game room, dining room, and just a…hang out room I guess you would call it." Lexie began to explain, "My parents have the downstairs, and it's like their haven down there so I don't go down much. And upstairs are our rooms."

With that she led them up the stairs.

"Lex, you guys have all of this for just you and your parents?" Taylor asked.

"Yeah…kind of I guess. We have people over all the time. My friends from High School were constantly here and family and friends come a lot. My parents said that it's really lonely without me and my friends around so you can just imagine how happy they were that we were coming for break."

"Well, it was definitely nice of them to invite us." Luke offered as Lexie stopped to open a door.

"Alright, so…we have six rooms up here. My room is that one," Lexie explained pointing to a door at the end of the hallway, "and then these are the five guest rooms. So we could all really have our own rooms, but if anyone wants to share we can do that too."

Gabriella and Taylor looked at each other with a smile.

"Well…how about we all settle into our own rooms and then…plan a sleepover anyway!" Taylor exclaimed.

"Tay, that doesn't even make sense…why wouldn't you all just share a room then?" Chad asked.

"Because Chad," Taylor drawled out, "That way we can each have our own space to unpack and get ready and get changed and everything, but we can be girls and stay up late talking too!"

"Riiight." The three guys responded with confusion on their face.

"Well…they just don't get it because they're guys. I think it's a great idea Tay!" Gabriella smiled.

"Ditto. Alright, so Gab you can take that one," Lexie began while pointing to a door, "Tay, that one. I'm assuming you three all want your own?"

"Yes!" Troy answered with big eyes and a sly smile, "You think I want to put up with Chad more often than I have to?"

"Shut up dude! You know you love me."

"So you want to share a room?" Troy questioned with a quirked eyebrow and his smirk still in place.

"No! I didn't say that! I-"

"Alright, alright! The guys get their own rooms." Gabriella stated as everyone else just laughed.

"Okay, then you guys can duke it out for the other three rooms, their pretty much the same though so don't kill each other for them."

With that the three guys looked at each other and all ran to the different rooms looking inside to decide which one they wanted to claim.

Lexie, Gabriella, and Taylor simply rolled their eyes with a laugh and walked to their respective rooms.

Half an hour later all six of them were heading out the front door with their swim suits on. The girls each had thrown a pair of shorts on overtop because they had decided to go exploring around Lexie's island before going swimming.

"Guys, it really isn't that big."

"It's still a freakin island Lex!" Chad explained.

"You probably already know this place inside and out, but we don't." Luke added.

"Yeah, actually I pretty much do. My friends and I would come and play games like _jailbreak_, or _capture the flag_, or my personal favorite, _hide and seek_ here all the time. Plus, they all thought it was fun to "explore" the island too."

"I think I'd like these friends of yours." Chad mused as the friends began to stray from a path and walk throughout the wooded, palm tree, paradise.

"I'm sure you would." Lexie agreed, "I don't know if you guys will get to meet any of them though. Since I didn't know I was coming home until a few weeks ago I didn't plan anything and…let's just say I was the planner of our group."

All six of them continued talking and joking around while they walked all over the island, with no destination in mind.

Luke and Chad had picked up branches somewhere along the way and would randomly stop and "sword" fight each other, causing eye rolls and laughter all around the group of friends.

Since the island was not that big, it wasn't long before they reached a beach.

"Mmm…now this looks like a good place to swim!" Chad yelled with a grin as he began running toward the water.

"I'm right behind ya buddy!" Troy agreed following Chad's lead.

Gabriella turned to Lexie as she watched the boys go, "There's no sharks…right?"

Lexie laughed, "Well, we've only lived here for about four years, but in those four years I have never seen so much as the fin of a shark. Don't worry about that. Listos!" **(AN: Listos is Spanish for Let's Go!)**

With that the remaining four dry friends dashed towards the open ocean.

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"Man that was wild!" Troy stated as he walked up the path toward Lexie's front door.

"Honestly, can we stay here forever?" Gabriella agreed wistfully as she jumped on Troy's back for a piggy-back the rest of the way up.

"Honestly, any more obvious?" Chad mumbles to Taylor, making her giggle in response.

As they reached the front door Lexie's mom swung it open for them.

"Well welcome back from your first island adventure." She joked looking at the her daughter and the five kids she had grown fond of over the last few months, "Dinner's almost ready, but since you all obviously enjoyed a swim in the ocean would you mind going around to the back and drying off before you come inside?"

"Of course!" Gabriella and Taylor chorused.

"Yes mom" Chad, Troy, Luke and Lexie responded in monotone voices.

Lexie looked at the three guys with a smile; "You would!" was all she had to say.

With that the six turned to make their way around the house. As they were walking up the stairs to the pool they began to hear voices coming from the pool.

"Uh Lex…I think people are stealing your pool." Chad commented as they all stopped on the stairs in curiosity to listen.

Troy, Luke, Gabriella, and Taylor all ended up doubled over in laughter after looking at Chad and then each other about his comment.

Lexie on the other hand took off up the stairs with a huge grin on her face.

"LEXIE-LOU!!!" Came a choir of voices as she reached the pool level.

"Guys! I can't believe you are here! How in the world did you know I got home today?!" Lexie shrieked at the seven boys in her swimming pool.

"Lou, you're not the only one that can plan!" A muscular boy with short dark hair responded from inside his blue inner-tube in the pool.

Lexie gave him a 'yeah right' look and a tall boy with bleach blonde hair climbed out of the pool as he responded to the look.

"Yeah! You're mom's really good at it too!" He laughed, giving Lexie a hug.

By this time the other five had finally stopped laughing (or defending himself in Chad's case) and made their way to the pool.

"Oh guys!" Lexie began, turning around to see her friends from USC, "These are my friends from High School. Gabriella, Taylor, Luke-"

"Troy? Chad?" Another boy from the pool interrupted her.

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_Alright, now I am going to say how sorry I am. I really did get this up as soon as possible. School started and with that and work I'm just really swamped right now. I'm trying though-promise! lol._

_I also added pictures of Lexie's house to the album that i have linked to my profile._

_Last...I'm officially addicted to Vanessa Hudgens CD...it's SOOO good. That +Taylor Swift+HSM 1 & 2 soundtracks make a GREAT music selection :-) _

_Author Recommends: _**Not Always What It Seems**_ by _**Dee31**. _There is a little slash, just to let you know, but it's between two OC's. It's really, really good and there's a lot of twists and turns along the way to keep it interesting! It's done now, but MAN i was on the edge of my seat the whole time! Enjoy!_


	18. Adding to the Mix

_This Chapter is dedicated to _**Angelic Ami **(You'll probably get a little frustrated w/this chapter, but don't worry-ok? lol), em91011 (No crying, here's your update! lol, that made me smile a lot! Thank you!), **charli quack** (Thank you so much! That honestly means a lot! I hope you like this on too!), src13 (Thank you! And now you'll find out!), **ZacEfronIsHot** (Thanks and here's the update!), GiLmOrEgIrL129 (Hehe, cliffy's are kinda fun!), **Little-libby-lou** (I love that you told me that you just had a half a bag of chocolate chips! It made me laugh a lot!), LaurFoSho (Those two will definitely make an appearance later on in the story! I love them too much not to!), **kimi1234** (I'm glad you like the quizzes, you're one of the only people who mentioned them!), x-squealer-x (I know it was a random cliffy...sorry about that:-P), **carito06** (the piggyback ride was just so...Troy & Gabriella! lol. Glad you liked that addition!), oywiththepoodles4 (Here's that update for you!), **LivesInLove** (First, I love your username! Second now you can find out who it is. Hope you're not disappointed!), bienbonita (More island adventure coming right up! And I know, I really wanted to show that not all rich people think they're better than others), **person with a really highvoice** (I know it wasn't as soon as you would have liked, but here's the update!). And finally, _**KKK-DouBLe-KaeKae**_! You are honestly one of the nicest, strongest people ever! You're messages mean more to me than you know:-)

_Normal disclaimer, HSM characters & beginning plot not mine. Original characters and this plot are mine_

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**-Chapter 16-**

_-Adding to the Mix-_

"Marc?" Troy and Chad asked together.

"Wait...you guys know each other?" Lexie intervened.

"Yeah!" Chad answered as huge smiles spread across all three boys faces, "Marc went to High Flyers with us the summer before senior year!"

"High Flyers?" A boy questioned as he climbed out of the pool.

"Yeah, it's this basketball camp thing for prospective college athletes. You spend a few weeks of the summer training and improving on your skills and stuff. A lot of college scouts are there too." Troy explained, "Dude, where are you tearing it up this year?"

"Wait, you mean that thing your dad sent you to?" A tall muscular boy with shaggy brown hair inquired before Marc could answer.

"Yeah Mike, that." Marc answered as he walked over to Troy and gave him a hug to say hello.

"What is it with you and already knowing people you're supposed to be meeting for the first time?" Gabriella whispered into Troy's ear as Chad and Marc hugged.

Troy shot her a playful glare, "Well, it must be my charm...people meet me and then can't stay away."  
"Honestly? Did you really just say that?" Gabriella questioned with a smile..  
"Yes I did," Troy replied with a smug grin.  
Taylor, who had been watching the exchange, turned her attention back to Lexie.  
"Well, these three might know each other, but the rest of us have never met...well I mean that I know of anyway." She finished with a questioning look to all the people around her.  
A collective answer of no's led Lexie to finish her introduction.  
By this time all seven of the boys had climbed out of the pool and all thirteen of them had made their way over to the cabana.  
"Right," Lexie began, "As I was saying...Gabriella, Luke, Taylor, Troy, and Chad...this is Marc, Sean, Bobby, Steve, Michael...or Mike, Kyle, and Zac. Wait...where's Ty?" Lexie asked.  
When all she got was a bunch of shrugs, Lexie just shook her head and continued, "Anyway, guys, these are my friends from USC. Troy and Chad are on our guy's basketball team."  
"Guys, that's so sweet that you two ended up at USC together. How many schools ended up trying to get you?" Marc asked.  
Troy and Chad began happily talking about their recruiting experience and catching up with Marc about what he had been up to over the last year.  
Lexie was in a playful fight with Bobby, Mike, Sean, and Steve about everything they had been doing this semester and the different girls they had been interested in.  
Gabriella and Taylor settled into a conversation with Kyle and Zac simply getting to know them.  
A little time passed before Mrs. McQue opened the back door to the patio, a plate of hamburgers and hotdogs in hand.  
"I come baring food I know you all want to eat!" She called as she walked over to the cabana  
"Thank you mom!" Chad, Troy, Luke, and Lexie called together.  
Lexie simply rolled her eyes as all of the others present laughed at how the three boys called her mom.  
"Yeah, thanks Mrs. M. You are STILL the greatest!" Marc added as she placed the food down on a table.  
"Well thank you very much. I'm just glad to have a full house again! Do you know how lonely it gets with just me and Rick?" She responded, "Oh, and there's more inside, I'll be right back out." She finished as her husband was coming over with more food in his hands.  
Kyle and Zac jumped up from where they had been sitting, "We're right behind ya Mrs. M. Just lead the way and tell us what to carry." Kyle spoke for both of them.  
"Those two are always the kiss-ups." Bobby commented to no one in particular earning him a round of laughs as Troy, Chad, and Luke too stood up to go help.  
"Oh no! More kiss-ups!" Sean called as the boys walked into the house to help.  
"Oh shut up guys. They aren't kiss-ups, they're just gentleman.. You should take lessons!" Lexie scolded them.  
Once all the food was brought out and everyone was getting plate fulls of the spread of meet, pasta's, salad's, and drinks, Lexie's phone started ringing.  
She ran over to the small table top that she had placed it on and saw a picture of her friend Ty flashing on the small screen.  
"Ty! Where the crap are you?" Lexie sat down on the couch laughing so hard she could hardly breathe before she spoke again, "Ok, ok, I'll tell them. Why don't you just bring a jet ski over? ... Oh dang it! I didn't realize it was that late. ... Yes, I know. ... Ok, somebody'll be over in the boat to pick you up in a few minutes.. ... K. See you soon."  
With that she closed her phone and turned to her friends with a smile.  
"Alright, who's going to go pick Ty up?"  
"Why wasn't he there when we told him to meet?" Marc asked.  
"Well...for the short version...he said you guys told him the actual time to meet, not the Ty time which gave him a half hour and then his new step-mom made him change his clothes before he came over because he wasn't dressed "appropriate" for _California Paradise_." She laughed.  
"You have got to be kidding me! A. That's my fault...I was the one who told him the time and I just completely forgot to tell him a half an hour early. and B. Not appropriate for _California Paradise_? We are SO making fun of whatever she made him wear," Mike answered.

"I'll go over and get him," Gabriella volunteered, feeling bad that the boy was being laughed at even though she had never met him.  
"But you don't know how to drive the boat." Kyle said, "I'll take you. We can go get him together."  
"Wait! I want to go too! I think it would be cool to be on the water when it's dark out." Taylor called as Kyle and Gabriella began to walk away.  
"I'm coming too! The boat at night is _my_ thing anyway!" Zac called joining the group that was now making their way down the steps.  
With that the four of them disappeared down the stairs. Troy was baffled. When he heard Gabriella volunteer to go he didn't think anything of it, but then that Kyle guy had said they could go together. It was just a boat ride, but Troy didn't like the idea of that. He had been about to say he wanted to go too when Taylor spoke up, cutting into his train of thought. Now he stood staring at the top step completely confused as to why the words he had thought didn't come out of his mouth and frustrated at himself for being down that Kyle and Zac got to go with Gabriella and Taylor and he didn't.

Lexie looked over, saw Troy 's face and where he was looking and couldn't help, but let a small laugh escape her lips before she walked over to him.

"Everything ok buddy?"

"What? Oh, yeah…Hey Lex. I'm fine. Just…confused?" Troy stated as a question.

"Are you asking me if you're confused?" Lexie laughed.

"I guess so?"

"Troy! Stop doing that! I know I'm good at reading minds, but come on now."

"Sorry!" Troy laughed, a smile finally coming to his face, "I'm fine. I think I just spaced out for a minute."

"Alright…I'll let you go with that…_this time_." Lexie responded nudging Troy with her shoulder.

"Oh thank you," Troy replied sarcastically, "So, you like having all your friends around? You were quite the man's lady in high school-huh?" He added with a big grin.

"Man's lady? Troy…you should probably never stay that again. It makes me sound dirty! But yeah," She started as she looked around her back pool deck and cabana, "This is perfect. All of my favorite people, except of course Cam, Dyl, & Scott, in one place. What more could I ask for?"

"Yeah I-"Troy Started…

"TROY!!!" Chad yelled from the other side of the pool.

Troy turned his attention from Lexie to Chad, "Yes?"

"Me, Luke, and Marc are going to play ball in the pool…you going to be our fourth or what?"

Troy smiled slyly, leaned down to Lexie and whispered, "Watch this." With that he swiftly turned back to Chad and replied nonchalantly, "I'll go with or what."

"What?! Troy Izaac Bolton, get your butt over here right now. That wasn't really a question. You have to be our fourth!" Chad answered dramatically as he raised his arms in protest.

"Sorry dude, I just don't feel like playing ball right now."

Chad gasped and grabbed his heart dramatically," Quick! Someone call 911! I've just been shot in the heart! My best friend doesn't want to play basketball!"

As he was pretending to fall over "dead" his foot slipped on some water and he tumbled, rather ungracefully, into the pool with a "TROOOOY!" escaping his mouth.

Everyone started laughing before Chad could even rise to the surface of the water.

"That went better than I even hoped!" Troy laughed out, "I just like getting him worked up."

As Chad resurfaced he was already speaking, "Bolton! I'm going to kill you! You knew that I would-"

Troy, ignoring Chad's rant, ripped off his shirt and ran for the pool, cannon-balling in when he reached the side.

When he resurfaced he faced a mock angry Chad with an innocent, boyish smile.

"Ready to play?" Troy asked.

Chad finally let out the laugh he had been holding in; even he had to admit that the scene had been pretty funny.

"You did that on purpose," Chad murmured as he dunked Troy into the water, "Luke, Marc, let's go!"

Without another word the other two jumped into the pool to start the game.

Meanwhile Taylor and Gabriella were enjoying themselves on the Pacific Ocean with three of Lexie's friends.

They had already picked Ty up at the hotel and had found out quickly that he was not only the Dylan or Scottie of Lexie's other group of friends; he was also the baby, younger than everyone else…and showed it proudly.

"So what kind of stuff do you guys do around here?" Gabriella asked as she recovered from laughing at Ty's story of how his Step-Mom had made him get changed.

"Surf," They all answered in unison.

"That's what we all do," Zac continued, "The eight of us; we were actually our High School's Varsity surf team. We had a killer senior year, but I'm nervous for them this year. I mean, they are ALL going to be stepping up from JV to Varsity."

Gabriella and Taylor glanced at each other with amused looks on their faces, neither really being sure of what that meant. Sure they had both been on their schools decathlon teams, but they didn't have Junior Varsity and Varsity.

Kyle caught onto the shared look by the girls and laughed, "You guys aren't really into sports?"

"No, no! It's not that. Actually we really like them…but our friends didn't play sports in high school and well, my brothers like sports, but one's six years older than me and the other's four so…we never really talked about their school teams, we just played for fun at home." Gabriella explained.

"Yeah, same here, except my sporty siblings are younger than me. My older siblings just didn't play them."

"Gotcha," Kyle answered, "Well have you ever surfed?"

"No! But I think that would be the coolest thing ever!" Gabriella exclaimed getting extremely excited.

"Me too! Extremely scary, but absolutely amazing," Taylor agreed.

"Well that's settled then," Zac returned, "Either sometime this break or some other time that you guys come home with Lexie Lou, we are going to teach you how to surf!"

"Deal!" Taylor and Gabriella exclaimed as Ty began to stand up.

"Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby!" He sang as he switched his weight from one foot to the other causing their small boat to rock.

"Ty, please sit down!" Gabriella urged getting suddenly nervous in the dark ocean.

"Why?!" Ty questioned continuing on with rocking, "You gotta live a little…stand up, take in the fresh air-"

"Take a dip in the ocean!" Kyle and Zac yelled together as the both used a hand to shove Ty overboard.

Taylor, Kyle, and Zac started laughing hysterically as Ty started bobbing up and down in the ocean yelling at them. They were already close enough to the island that he could easily swim to shore or simply stand up, but he chose to just bob and yell.

"Guys!" Gabriella scolded, trying her hardest to hold back her own laugh, "That was so mean!"

"Aw! Poor Ty!" Kyle teased, "Do you feel bad enough for him to join him in the water Gabriella?" He asked as he began to stand up.

"No!" She stated firmly, her eyes growing large at the sight of Kyle getting closer to her.

"Yes!" He yelled back as he scooped her up, "Zac, you take the reins and steer the boat back in…I've got to take care of something!"

"No, no, no, no, no!" Gabriella yelled as she tried to kick her feet, "Tay, save me!"

Taylor simply laughed, "I think I'm good Gab, maybe next time!"

"Some friend you aaaaaaaaaaaaaah," Gabriella yelled as Kyle jumped off the boat with her in his arms.

Ty cheered as Taylor and Zac just laughed. Zac then cut the engine and laid back on the now empty seats, staring into the great big sky.

Taylor looked over at him and, thinking that it looked extremely peaceful, decided to do the same.

"The stars are so bright out here," Zac commented after a minute of just listening to the three in the water laughing.

"I know," Taylor replied, "Back in Albuquerque it's really hard to see the stars, unless you're way out in the country."

"Hey Taylor?"

"Yeah?"

"I just want to say thanks, from all of us guys."

"For what?" Taylor asked, truly confused.

"For taking care of our Lou. I'm so glad that she found genuine girl friends. She had some girl friends on her soccer team in High School, but none that she really ever trusted. It was always Lexie Lou and her boys. Which, don't get me wrong, we all absolutely loved, but it always just felt like something was missing for her," Zac explained.

Taylor simply smiled at this boy's authentic concern for her friend, "Of course. I'm really glad we have Lex. She was really lucky to have you guys in High School though too."

They both laid there content with the world around them for a few minutes before Zac realized something was missing.

"Taylor, do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Exactly!" Zac yelled, sitting up abruptly as the small boat began to rock back and forth.

"What…What is that?" Taylor asked, getting scared.

"That…is our three _friends_."

Just then Taylor heard Gabriella giggle and completely caught on.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Taylor yelled.

As the words came out of her mouth the boat flipped the whole way over and Taylor and Zac were left to swim out from under the boat.

"Gabriella Eve Montez!"

"Can I help you?" Gabriella laughed as she saw her friends shocked face, "Hey, at least we still have our swim suits on!"

Taylor cracked a smile as the three boys went swimming over to them.

"And you're stranded in the pacific ocean with three incredibly good looking guys!" Ty added.

"Really? Where are they at?!" Taylor asked in mock excitement.

"Haha, you're so funny!" Kyle joked back, "But seriously Ty…stranded?"

"Honestly!" Gabriella exclaimed, "The Island is about two feet away."

"Exaggerate much?" Zac joined into the conversation as he began to swim in a circle.

Kyle and Ty quickly caught on and soon the three of them were swimming in circles around the two girls.

"Tay, what are they doing?" Gabriella whispered.

"I'm not really sure, but I_ feel_ as if we should get out of here!" Taylor responded as they eyed the guys wearily.

Suddenly the three guys stopped, causing Taylor and Gabriella even more worry, and shared a quick glance.

Taylor and Gabriella looked at each other scared and as they did Ty ducked under the water unseen. Kyle and Zac started approaching the girls while reciting, "Duh, dunt, duh, dunt" (the _Jaws_ theme).

"Ok guys, SO not funny! Sharks make me really nervous!" Gabriella tried to reason, but got absolutely no response.

When Zac and Kyle were inches from the two girls Ty swam for the girls and jabbed both of them in the sides.

Taylor and Gabriella both let out shrieks before they saw Ty come up for breadth laughing hysterically.

"You guys are so mean!" Taylor and Gabriella yelled together feigning anger.

"Aw, but you know you still love us." Zac chided as he engulfed Taylor in a hug.

"It's true. You've only known us for a little while and already you're under our spell." Kyle added as he engulfed Gabriella.

"And what spell would that be Kyle?" Gabriella pondered as she let him hug her.

"Yeah, what spell do we have? Why don't I know about it?" Ty questioned causing the other four to laugh.

"Never mind Ty…never mind," Kyle shook his head.

"Hey, we should head back in. We don't want everyone to worry and if we don't get Ty up there soon it's likely that Lexie'll have us all beheaded or something." Zac put in.

"You guys act like Lex is some kind of drill sergeant or something." Taylor commented.

The guys just laughed, it was hard to explain their and Lexie's friendship to other people.

The three guys grabbed the side of the boat and pulled it into shore. Gabriella and Taylor swam behind them just talking to each other.

The five of them began their ascent up the hill, hearing the loud laughing and yelling coming from the pool area.

Luke, Chad, Troy, and Marc were still playing their game of basketball in the pool, but now Sean, Steve, Bobby, and Mike had joined them. Lexie was sitting on the side of the pool with her legs dangling in watching her friends. Mr. and Mrs. McQue had already headed in for the night.

Lexie turned her head and saw the other five come up the stairs, all dripping wet.

"What happened to you guys?!"

"The ocean." Taylor responded.

"Yeah, I got pushed in!" Ty exclaimed indignantly as he scooped Lexie into a big bear hug.

"I got _carried_ in!" Gabriella added.

"We got dumped in!" Zac continued.

"Yeah! Right out of the boat by those three!" Taylor agreed pointing to Gabriella, Kyle, and Zac.

"And you Kyle?" Lexie asked the only one who hadn't spoken yet.

"Me?! I jumped!"

"This is how I got carried!" Gabriella added as she, Taylor, and Lexie went to sit by the side of the pool again.

The guys in the pool had stopped playing for a minute to listen to the recall of why the others were wet.

Neither Troy nor Chad seemed as amused as everyone else, but they just stayed quiet.

The three additional boys jumped into the pool, but after many protests from the Huntington guys (except Marc) they stopped playing basketball and moved onto football.

Taylor, Gabriella, and Lexie all laid back looking up at their stars with their feet in the pool, just listening to the guys play.

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_The End! That was a REALLY long chapter!_

_If anyone is interested in a Fan-Fic Exchange, check out my profile! We're trying to get more people and I think it would be a blast!_

_Author Recommends: _**Eventually, Luck Does Run Out**_ by _**Dee31**._ It's my second one by her, but I can't help it! She's a fantastic author!  
_


	19. Good Morning Cali

_This chapter goes out to _**KKK-DouBLe-KaeKae** (Sorry for the confusion! This chapter should answer some questions for you :-P), _Mars lover who has a highvoice_ (thank you SO much for your encouragement! It means the world! I'm glad you're loving it!), **linklover26** (Thank you! Here's the next one, I hope it lives up to your expectations!), _molllyyy12333_ (I'm so glad! Here's that update for you!), **xxTWILIGHTxxEdward's Lovexx** (I already responded to you, but once again, I'm sorry for your frustration, but I hope this helps at least a little!), _ZacEfronIsHot_ (lol, you definitely caught onto something there!), **evexl** (Thanks! I'm posting as soon as I can and we'll just have to see about those triangles! Haha.), _charli quack_ (Yeay! I'm glad you loved that, it was really fun to write! Also, I'm so glad you're going to do the fic exchange!), **Line 101** (lol, you shall see just as soon as you keep reading!), _DutchIcePrincess_ (I'm glad! Thanks for all support throughout this story!), **HSMandChelseaFCfan** (I'm glad you liked the last chapter and thank you SO much for your specific response and telling me what you liked. It's much appreciated!)

_Once again, you are all amazing! I also want to say thanks to all of the other readers:-) _

_Normal disclaimer, HSM characters & beginning plot not mine. Original characters and this plot are mine _

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**-Chapter 17-**

_-Good Morning Cali-_

Gabriella began to wake up, lying on the couch in Lexie's room, with a smile on her face. She could smell the ocean through Lexie's windows and was ready for another day in paradise.

As she opened her eyes, she spotted Taylor already up and laying in a hammock on Lexie's balcony reading.

She looked over and saw that Lexie was beginning to stir as well.

Taylor turned her head to check if her friends had woken up yet and noticed Gabriella sitting up. She put her bookmark back in her book and walked inside.

"Morning Gab." Taylor greeted.

"Morning Tay." Gabriella smiled back.

"What do you say we finish waking Lex up?" Taylor asked with a smile.

"I say it's a splendid idea!"

The two girls walked quietly over to Lexie's bed where she was already rubbing her eyes willing them to open. They both slowly climbed onto her bed and leaned down so that their faces were only a foot away from Lexie's and stared directly at her.

When Lexie finally got her eyes to open her body immediately jumped and she let out a small scream at the sight of her friends watching her so closely.

"Guys! Way to scare me before I'm actually awake!" Lexie cried in a groan.

"Good morning to you too!" Gabriella joked as she and Taylor both pulled away and sat Indian Style on Lexie's bed.

Lexie sat up too and rested against her headboard.

"I might have been up sooner if those dang boys would have left earlier," Lexie complained.

"Lex…you know you love them!" Gabriella countered.

"Yeah, plus at least you got them to leave without playing capture the flag last night. Then we really would have been up forever!" Taylor added.

"True story. So, honestly, what did you guys think of the guys?" Lexie asked with a bit of hesitation.

"They were great!" Taylor began excitedly, "I didn't really get to talk to all of them last night, but Ty is absolutely hilarious and Zac and Kyle were pretty sweet."

"Definitely." Agreed Gabriella with a smile.

"Speaking of Kyle," Lexie began with a suspicious grin, "What was that flirting action I saw Gab?"

"What?" Gabriella asked, truly confused.

"Girl, what are you talking about," Taylor cut in, "Her heart is beating 'Troy-Troy, Troy-Troy' so loud that she couldn't even hear another guy flirt with her." She finished with her hand fluttering over her heart.

Lexie burst out laughing and Gabriella gasped.

"Ah! Shut up Tay!" She yelled, grabbing a pillow and hitting her friend with it, "It's so not like that with Troy."

This of course just earned her 'yeah right' looks from the other two.

"Yeah Gab, and Justin Timberlake _isn't_ the hottest guy to ever be created." Lexie returned with complete sarcasm.

"Shut up! Seriously," Gabriella began while trying to do some quick thinking, "It's not like that. I mean, it can't be-right? I mean…It's not like we've ever kissed or anything. Held hands sure, but never kissed," Gabriella completely missed the shocked expressions on her friend's faces and continued her verbal processing, "Because Troy could never like me like that. Even if he did he wouldn't ask me out." And then it dawned on her, "Oh crap! Of course he wouldn't! He would be too worried that I would say yes for the same reason that I said yes to Logan…but it wouldn't be for the same reason because I do actually want to go out with Troy and I would have decided that before he actually asked the question because obviously I'm deciding that right-" And she stopped dead in her tracks.

Taylor and Lexie sat completely stunned. Both had stopped listening when she said, 'held hands sure' as if it were no big deal, but started to listen again when they heard 'I do actually want to go out with Troy.'

"Hold up!" Lexie began.

"Back up the freight train," Taylor continued, "You guys have held hands?!"

"Oh, I forgot about that," Lexie added, "I was talking about you finally admitting that you want to date T!"

Gabriella just looked at her friends sheepishly. She was beyond embarrassed, not to mention completely confused by herself.

"Ok so…" Gabriella began, but didn't know how to continue.

The truth was, they had started holding hands a few weeks ago, but it was only on Thursday nights, and it was only while they walked around after their time at the Smoothie Lounge. Gabriella hadn't even thought anything of it because it just seemed so natural. However, she couldn't tell her friends this because they didn't even know about the Smoothie Lounge secrets.

"Well?!" Taylor asked excitedly.

"So, we've just held hands when it was like him trying to hurry me along, or me trying to hurry him along. Not a big deal. And…I guess I like him, but that feels really selfish."

"How in the world is it selfish to like a great guy? Because you think you'd be hurting Brooke's chances with him? That is really not something you need to worry about Gab." Lexie countered.

"No," Gabriella now laughed, "It's not that! It's…what if Troy and I started dating…and then we broke up. Just by taking that chance, I'm taking the chance of breaking up this group of friends that we've formed. Ya know?"

"But Gabriella, that's not being fair to yourself. You do have a valid point, truthfully, you do, but at the same time how do you know you guys will break up? If that's the case, then by not taking that chance you are missing out on something better." Taylor expressed.

"I know," Gabriella conceded, "It's just that…I don't want to be put into another situation that I was with Logan." She sighed, finally verbalizing the true reason she had been pushing her feelings for Troy to the back of her mind.

Lexie and Taylor shared a knowing look before turning back to Gabriella.

"Gabriella, please think about the reason that you broke up with Logan, the reason that you weren't happy with him and _then_ repeat that sentence." Lexie said.

Gabriella took a minute to take in what she heard as Taylor and Lexie just watched her sympathetically.

"I know," Gabriella finally spoke, "I know that it's completely different with Troy because Troy, and all of you, know who I really am, but that still doesn't change the fact that he and I dating would complicate the friendship."

"It wouldn't have to!" Taylor continued to try to convince her, "Gab, just because you guys were dating, you wouldn't have to be all over each other all the time. It would mean that you spent more time alone, that you got to know each other better…that you actually knew how the other felt. It would change our group of friends, I'm not going to try to say that it wouldn't, but it could be a good change-ya know?

Lexie nodded her head in agreement, "We know you better than to think that if you two started dating you would ditch the rest of us."

"Good, because I would _never_ do that," Gabriella assured them whole-heartedly, "But guys, there's no reason for us to even be having this conversation. Troy doesn't like me and I don't want to start trying to get him to like me because that would just be awkward."

Taylor threw her hands up in mock frustration and rolled her eyes as she said, "You don't have to try to get that boy to like you because I'm _sure_ that he already does."

"I'll admit that Troy likes me if you admit that Chad likes you!" Gabriella countered with a smile.

"OOOH!" Lexie yelled as she threw her body backward laughing.

"Uh! Excuse me! One…he does not and two…how in the world did this conversation just take that turn?!"

Now it was Gabriella's turn to laugh as she went to role off the bed and said, "You'll see Tay, you'll see!"

Lexie joined in the laugh as she too got up and said, "Come on guys, let's go see if the guys are up and grab some breakfast."

Taylor just glared at her two friends before she got off the bed and followed them out of the room.

As they walked into the hallway the three girls heard loud laughing and yelling coming from down the stairs.

"Either the guys are up, or you have some really funny robbers breaking into your house Lex," Taylor commented as the descended the stairs.

"It's about time you girls got up," Mrs. McQue spoke as the girls entered the kitchen, "These guys have already been up, went swimming, and had breakfast!"

Lexie glanced over at the clock and noticed that it was only 11:00 in the morning.

"Why did you guys get up so early?"

Troy and Luke glared at Chad who just grinned like a little kid.

"Well, it wasn't the plan, I'll tell you that much," Troy spoke.

"Yeah, if someone hadn't come in to my room and shook me until I woke up I'd most likely be just joining you all too," Luke agreed with a smile.

"Hey! I was awake…I'm not really sure why…but anyway, I got bored! You guys know that I can't stand being bored!" Chad defended.

"Then you could have gone swimming by yourself!" Troy countered.

"T, how long have you known me?" Chad asked and Troy just glared at him, "Right, and do I ever want to do things by myself?"

Troy just groaned in response.

"At least we didn't waste any of our vacation." Luke said.

"Exactly!" Chad called, "At least someone's on my side!"

The girls just laughed as they took seats around the table and began to dish out the food that was prepared on the table for themselves.

"Well, if it makes you guys feel any better, we have been up for awhile too, we were just talking before we came down," Gabriella said.

"Hey! This isn't a Sunday, you aren't allowed to ditch us," Chad commented.

"We aren't ditching you! We were just talking, and we really didn't expect you guys to be up yet." Lexie said as she rolled her eyes.

"So, what are the plans for today?" Luke asked.

Lexie took her cue and said, "Well, I thought we'd go back over to the hotel since we didn't get to yesterday and I can show you guys around. There's tons of stuff to do there, it's seriously so fun, but what did you guys want to do?"

"As long as we are just kickin' back, having fun, I'm in," Troy stated.

"Ditto." The other four said together.

"Alright, awesome. How about we do whatever here and then all get ready and head back over to the main land?"

Heads nodded as the six of them relaxed into conversation over their breakfast with Mrs. McQue watching with a smile.

An hour later, as the six beach ready teens were getting into Lexie's small boat, they were still discussing exactly what the day would hold for them.

"Guys, I know this is completely girly, but I really think we should go to the spa. It's so relaxing and they do facials and massages and you can hear the ocean from where you are…It's honestly the most relaxing thing in the world," Lexie said.

The three boys perked up at the mention of a massage.

"Hey…that whole facial, spa, whatever thing may be girly…but massages are definitely not," Chad answered.

"Completely agreed, with how hard we practice and stuff, a massage sounds great," Troy agreed.

"Yeah, and with how hard these two make me work even though I'm _not_ in a sport," Luke began, referring to Troy and Chad, "My poor muscles need a brake."

Taylor and Gabriella squealed and Taylor answered for both of them.

"Yeah, who doesn't want to be pampered every now and then? We are so in!"

Everyone laughed at Taylor's bubbly excitement as they began to leave the small island.

"Alright, so we'll do jet-ski's first and then hit up the spa," Lexie stated with a smile.

"Hey Gab, do you want to do the jet-ski with me?" Luke asked after they had decided to do the water sport in pairs.

"Yeah of course! We'll have to get tons of pictures to send my mom," Gabriella smiled, "You do know that she asks about you all the time."

"Hey, what can I say," Luke laughed, "She knows I'll look out for you!"

"Tay, what about me and you going together?" Lexie asked.

"Definitely, at least I know you'll listen if I ask you to slow down," Taylor agreed while throwing a glare at Chad and Troy.

"Uh oh…that leaves the big egos together," Gabriella teased.

"Ouch! Gabs, that hurt," Troy joked sarcastically, and then added on as an afterthought, "Oh and we do not have big egos."

"Oh no?" Taylor challenged, "Then who's going to drive?"

"I am!" Troy answered as if it were obvious.

"Oh no you're not!" Chad put in, "I am so much better on one of those things than you."

"In your dreams maybe," Troy retorted.

"Oh no, no egos there at all, you're right." Lexie commented sarcastically as the three girls rolled their eyes.

"It's not an ego thing, it's a…" Troy tried to defend, but couldn't think of what to say.

"Exactly!" Chad agreed indignantly, even though Troy hadn't really said anything.

The girls just laughed and shook their heads as Lexie pulled the boat up onto shore and they began to depart.

"Ya know, it's not very nice of you to make fun of me," Troy whispered in Gabriella's ear as he climbed out of the boat behind her.

She laughed and waited for him to climb the rest of the way out before she said, "No, but it is kind of _fun_!"

"What am I going to do with you? Here I think you're on my side, making fun of Chad and then you go and turn on me," Troy pouted in response.

Gabriella giggled as she gave him a big hug from the side.

"Oh Tibs, you know I'm always on your side," She replied, shaking her head.

"You better be!" Troy responded wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

"Gabi, look out!" Taylor yelled as she sprinted past the two, nearly bumping into them, while running away from Chad.

"Tay, you can't out run me!" Chad yelled as he two sped past Gabriella and Troy, "Sorry guys!" He added to his friends who had literally jumped to get out of his way.

Chad quickly caught up to Taylor on the sandy beach and wrapped his arms around her waist. He picked her up, swung her around a few times and then headed for the water.

"Chad, no! Put me down!" Taylor protested as she kicked her legs.

Chad went into the water, just up to his ankles, and held her over the water.

"Say you're sorry!" He prodded.

"But you really _are_ a lunkhead!" Taylor responded in a begging voice.

"That's really not going to help your situation you know," Chad answered as he took another step into the water.

"Ok, ok, ok! I'm sorry!"

"Very good," Chad answered with a nod of his head and a satisfied grin as he put her back on the shore.

Taylor looked at him mischievously and quickly took off her shorts and t-shirt that she had been wearing over her bathing suit and shoved them into her bag. She handed the bag to a passing Gabriella, "Can you hold these for a moment?"

"Of course," Gabriella answered smiling at her best friend and wondering what she was going to say.

"Thank you," Taylor answered, and then turned her attention back to Chad. "I am truly am terribly sorry," she said, taking a step closer to him, "Sorry you're not as clever as me and will always be a lunkhead!" She finished with a shout as she went dashing down the beach again.

This time Chad caught her even quicker and ran straight into the water with her in his arms.

Taylor didn't care though, that was, of course, her plan. She just didn't want to get her clothes and bag wet.

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_Sorry for all of the confusion with the updating that I did with the last chapter and stuff! I just wanted to combine 2 chapters from the beginning of the story b/c they were much too short for my liking :-) _

_Author Recommends: _**Kyle Bolton**_ by _**HSMandChelseaFCfan**._ This story is so great! I really enjoyed it and I hope you will too!  
_


	20. The Secret Plan

_**This chapter is dedicated to**_: **Kt luvs** (Thanks so much for reading and adding me with everything! I'm so glad that you're enjoying this!), _xxxNaley forevaxxx_ (lol, I'm glad that you like it and I'm working on that request! lol), **isaczac** (Thank you so much! It really means a lot that you loved it!), _Mars lover who has a highvoice_ (Haha, I really do hate it when everyone turns on you and starts hitting you with pillows! lol...your review was amazing and I loved it! Thanks so much for everything!), **charli quack** (glad that you liked the scene with Chad and Taylor! I know this update took awhile, but I promise that I'm trying!), _linklover26_ (Chad and Taylor really are adorable-aren't they? lol, here's the next update for you!), **ToniMarie63** (yeah for you being a new reader!!! I'm so glad that you found the story and thank you SOOO much for responding!), _em91011_ (Ah haha! Your review was amazing! I'm sorry that this took so long! Truthfully! You have no idea how much your review meant to me by the way), ** jose** (I'm really glad that you like it, and that's a main part of the story so as time goes by there will be more development there! Hope you enjoy this one), _kimi1234_ (I'm SO glad that you liked the last chapter so much! Hopefully this one will live up to it too. lol. I know, I was getting so anxious for them to know too! Haha. Thanks for being so specific in your review too, I really liked that! Oh, and I put info at the bottom about the links to the recommendations for you!), **KKK-DouBLe-KaeKae** (We haven't talked in forever! Hope you're doing well and I hope that you like this chapter too. About standardized testing...I completely understand that mush for a brain feeling! Haha), _Angelic Ami_ (lol, maaaybe! Hahaha, here's your update! Hope you enjoy it!), **src13** (I'm glad that you like them, they're SO fun to write!), _ZacEfronIsHot_ (I know, they are all so obvious, but that's makes the other characters reactions so much fun to write! lol. Tibs is because Troy's initials are T.I.B. and then the "S" just got added on because Gabriella liked the way it sounded. Maybe I'll write that convo out as a flashback or something...would you like that?), **Nattou** (Girl, you're awesome! lol...I'm so glad that you're reading this story now and I'm SO sorry that it took me so long to update! I hope that you forgive me and keep reading!),_ LLiisa_ (Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it!), **readingfreak101** (first, have I mentioned that I really like your username? Isn't reading just incredible?! Second, I'm glad you loved it and I'm sorry you had to wait for the update!), _xxChriistina_ (Thanks so much! It means a lot that you think it's great and here's the next update for you!), **LivesInLove** (lol, Daph, you're hilarious! I'll try to get more Troy&Gabriella scenes in there for you! Haha), _XxXDrama QueenXxX_ (Yeay! You thought it was cute! Sorry the update took so long!), **Line 101** (Aw! I'm seriously SO glad that you loved it! You will just have to wait and see when Troy & Gabriella get together! lol, hehe), _evexl_ (lol, I'm glad that you like the flirting! Haha, it's so much fun to write-ya know? Oh, and was it an interesting good or an interesting bad? Hope that you like this one!), **frangipani675 **(lol! Iove, love, love you for reading it! Seriously, I'm glad that you like it!), and _carito06_ (I know, she was being so stubborn! Haha! Sorry this update took awhile, I'm really going to try to get the next one out to you quicker!).

Sorry that was so long, these people are all just so amazing! Now, thanks for reading and enjoy!

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Recap:

_This time Chad caught her even quicker and ran straight into the water with her in his arms._

_Taylor didn't care though, because that was of course her plan. She just didn't want to get her clothes and bag wet._

**-Chapter 18-**

_-The Secret Plan -_

Finally, after two hours of riding around the Pacific Ocean on Jet Ski's…switching partners and drivers multiple times of course…and receiving breath-taking massages, the Triple Threat Trio were all enjoying pedicures while the Three Musketeers were off in the game room battling out their egos.

Lexie lay back in her chair as she looked out over the ocean and rested her arms behind her head with a sigh.

"I'm so glad you guys are here."

Gabriella and Taylor both smiled as they relaxed into the same position as Lexie.

"Me too Lex," Taylor began, "School has really been tough lately and this is exactly what my body ordered."

"You and me both," Gabriella agreed, "Ya know, I've never had a pedicure. I actually only had a manicure once and that was just for my brothers wedding."

"Really?!" The other two asked together in surprise.

"Well yeah, I don't know when else-"

Gabriella was cut off by her cell phone vibrating on the small table in between her and Taylor's chairs.

"I would have gotten one." She finished as she picked the phone up.

Gabriella smiled as she saw who the text was from.

_Ya know the only thing that's not perfect about today?_

Gabriella laughed, but took the bait and responded.

**Nope, what would that be, Troy?**

Taylor and Lexie shared a look before Taylor spoke up, "Who was that Gab? Or should I say _Gabs?"_

"Oh, be quiet," Gabriella responded, "It was nobody."

"Yes, because clearly nobody is one of our best friends, has blue eyes, brown hair, plays basketball, and just happens to be crazy about you," Lexie responded in sarcasm with her eyes still closed.

"Ah!" Gabriella screeched, but didn't actually respond because she heard her phone vibrate again.

_It's Thursday…and we don't get to sneak out alone together. Talk about sad!_

Gabriella smiled again and this time let out a small laugh. He was such a little charmer and he didn't even try to be.

**Who says we don't get to sneak out alone together?**

"Seriously Gabriella, they just left like ten minutes ago and he's already texting you?" Taylor asked, and then heard her own phone.

"Oh gosh, am I going to have to start dating Luke just to fit in around here or something?" Lexie laughed with an amused tone.

"Hey, who said that was Chad? Other people text me too ya know!" Taylor defended as she replied on her phone.

"Yeah, I know they do, but it was Chad-wasn't it?" Lexie returned as they once again heard Gabriella's phone vibrate.

"Sorry guys! I'm just going to respond one last time and I'll tell him that I'll talk to him when we're done. Promise!" Gabriella said as she picked up her phone and read,

_I like the way you think Gabs! What do you have in mind?_

"Yeah, and Chad just asked some stupid questions, I shouldn't get another one from him." Taylor added, agreeing to have true, relaxing girl time _and_ answering Lexie's question at one time.

"Guys I'm just kidding around, you guys would never make me feel that way," Lexie assured.

Gabriella smiled when she heard Lexie's phone vibrate a couple of times as she finally answered Troy.

**I'll tell you later, but roll with the punches when I suggest stuff  
and I'll fill you in when I can. Now, sorry…no more texts, we're  
having girl talk! **

Lexie laughed out loud as she read her three texts.

"They're so ridiculous. First one was from Chad, 'Hey Lex…hope your feet don't smell or else I feel really bad for that lady!' Next one was from Troy, "I just completely destroyed Chad and Luke in _Combat Space Wars!_ I know I'm amazing…you don't have to tell me twice.' And then one from Luke, 'My roommates are absolutely ridiculous. You'll have to excuse their attempt to be humorous and their big heads. Please save me!'"

Taylor and Gabriella both joined in laughing with Lexie at their friend's expense.

Lexie laughed even harder when she read the last line from Luke, 'and they won't stop texting Tay & Gab! Honestly, could they be any more obvious? Especially Troy.'

"Oh my gosh, I love them." Gabriella finally got out.

"Ditto!" The other two chorused.

"However, onto _another_ subject," Taylor began, "What are we going to do tonight?"

Gabriella saw her opportunity and took it as she began to put her plan into action.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**_

"Guys come on, I really want to play!"

"Chad, I'm tired!" Troy yelled from a couch he was laying on in the game room.

"Luke, won't you come?!"

"Chad, I'm beat too. Can't you just play a one player game?" Luke answered from a couch opposite Troy.

"Oh gee, I'd love to…except for the fact that I hate playing games by myself."

Troy and Luke both just groaned and stayed where they were with their eyes closed.

"You guys should have just stayed and gotten your _nails_ done with the girls!" Chad whined as he walked toward his roommates.

"We've been playing in here for almost two hours dude, my brain's shot."

"Arg, well then I hope the girls come back down soon because you two are boring," Chad answered

He sighed loudly then went over to a two person shooter game and started to pretend he was playing while throwing the other two guys glares.

"Fine Chad, I'll come play," Luke finally gave in as he picked himself up off the couch.

"YES!"

Troy rolled his eyes, glad that they now had Luke, who also enjoyed video games and would give in to Chad quickly, so that Troy could now enjoy relaxing more often.

"Who wants to admire our nails?!" Taylor called in her best possible girly voice as she and the other two girls entered the game room.

"Yes! They're back! Now we can go eat…right?!" Chad asked as he turned away from him and Luke's current game. He then added sarcastically, "Oh, and you _know_ I want to look at your nails Tay!"

The three girls laughed as the all went and wiggled their fingers in Chad's face.

"Aren't they beautiful?! I'm sure they could fit you guys in for tomorrow," Gabriella teased.

"Oh gag me!" Chad answered as Troy and Luke walked over laughing, to join the others by the door.

"So…food?" Lexie questioned.

"Absolutely," the three guys chorused together.

"Alright so, we were thinking that we could go out for lunch, walk around town a little," Lexie started as the group exited the game room.

"Maybe get a little shopping in," Taylor added as they made their way toward the front door.

"Then come back, enjoy the beach for awhile longer," Gabriella continued.

"Play a little beach volleyball or football or something," Taylor added again as everyone crossed the parking lot towards the two vehicles they were taking.

"Then go back to Lexie's, have dinner, hang out, and then watch a movie," Gabriella finished as she reached Chad's jeep.

"Well I'm glad you girls didn't plan the rest of the day without us or anything," Troy said sarcastically with a smirk on his face as he went to give Gabriella a hand into the Jeep.

"Hey! We said we were thinking! You guys can veto if you want," Gabriella returned.

"Yeah…but good luck with that!" Taylor remarked under her breath.

Chad heard this and laughed out loud a little earning a small smirk reserved just for him from Taylor.

"Hey, I'm not complaining. That sounds like a good plan to me," Chad agreed with the girls, "Why don't we all squeeze into the jeep for tonight? It's not like we're going far and six people can fit for a little while."

Lexie, Luke, and Taylor all exchanged a glance and a shrug before they closed the doors to Lexie's car and headed over to the jeep.

Lexie jumped up front between Troy and Chad since she was the smallest and Luke and Taylor joined Gabriella in the back.

"Man, why do I always get stuck in the back?" Luke complained.

"I offered you the front on the way here!" Taylor countered.

"Sorry dude…I'm not offering you the front this time," Troy half apologized.

"Guess you just have to be quicker man, it's all about the competition…on the way out of the restaurant you have to call shotgun then you'll get it," Chad explained in his competitive manner.

Luke just rolled his eyes as Lexie turned the music up louder and directed Chad where to go.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**_

Four hours later the six close friends were running around the exclusive_California Paradise_ beach property playing a very competitive game of girls versus boys tackle football.

It was currently the girl's ball and Taylor was playing Quarterback. With the score tied at 14-14, the next touchdown would win.

"Three, eight, out…HIKE!" Taylor yelled and Lexie snapped the ball back to her.

Lexie and Gabriella then took their cues from the play that Taylor called and ran in a figure eight motion past each other and around the amused boys.

Chad was counting to ten before he could rush in and try to tackle Taylor.

"Five, six…"

As Lexie and Gabriella each finished their figure eight's they headed for the opposite outside ends of the end zone.

Luke was guarding Lexie, but Gabriella was wide open as Troy stood in the middle of the sand playing field bent over laughing.

"Eight, nine…"

Taylor launched the ball with all her strength toward Gabriella.

Chad turned around once Taylor let go of the ball to see where it was headed and spotted the wide open Gabriella in the end zone and the laughing Troy ten yards away.

"Troy!!!"

Troy snapped his head up just in time to see Gabriella snatch the ball out of the air and take two large leaps to the end zone.

"TOUCHDOWN!!!" The three girls screamed together as Gabriella spiked the ball into the sand and Lexie and Taylor tackled her to the ground.

The three girls got up and did their touch down dance laughing.

"That, my friends…is how you beat boys at football," Lexie stated proudly.

"That's not fair!" Chad whined, "You guys cheated."

"How did we cheat?!" Taylor asked pretending to be appalled.

"You…you…" Chad stuttered.

"You ran around in circles and called them plays!" Troy cut in laughing.

"We were not running around in circles!" Gabriella argued, "Our play was three…for the three people on our team, eight…so we ran in a figure eight, out…so we ran to the outside of the end zone!"

The boy's eyes all grew extremely round in shock.

"Dudes…they completely just beat us," Luke stated in a matter of fact tone with a small smile on his face.

"Come on, let's head back over," Lexie suggested as Chad was about to open his mouth to respond again.

"Definitely," Troy agreed as everyone started to head towards Lexie's small boat.

Troy nonchalantly grabed Gabriella's wrist and pulled her to the back of the group with him as Lexie and Chad fought about the football game animatedly and Taylor and Luke add comments in here and there between laughs.

"Gabs, you're really keeping me in the dark here. How am I supposed to know if I'm rolling with _your_ punches or someone elses?" Troy asked, pretending to be exasperated.

"Tibs, trust me! Alright, so I think it's going to be pretty simple. We eat dinner and then have some dessert, except you don't take any dessert-ok?" Gabriella explained with an innocent smile.

"I'm not really liking this plan so much," Troy frowned at her, "How about I eat a ton of dessert? I like that plan!"

"No listen to the rest!" Gabriella urged and then continued to fill Troy in until they were within earshot of their friends who were impatiently waiting in the boat.

"Hurry up slow pokes!" Chad called to them from his seat next to Taylor in the boat.

"We're coming, we're coming," Troy assured as he held out a hand to help Gabriella into the boat.

"Thanks," Gabriella smiled warmly at him.

Once Troy was safely next to Gabriella they took off en route to the island.

As they entered the back of Lexie's house, all six noses were filled with the smell of a home cooked meal.

"Welcome back guys!" Mrs. McQue greeted from her spot in the kitchen.

"Mom this smells delicious," Lexie commented as she looked around the room at the food that her mom had prepared.

"Well you guys are just in time, I just pulled out the last of the chicken," her mom responded.

The three girls took seats at bar stools around the island in the kitchen and the three guys leaned against various counters.

"Seriously Mrs.M, you didn't have to make all of this for us," Luke said.

"Oh please, it was my pleasure! You truly have no idea how much we've missed having Lexie at home…and of course all of the friends she brings with her. Why don't you guys go get changed and then come back down for dinner. Lexie's dad should be home any minute, he just ran outside to pick some fresh fruit from the garden."

The six friends all agreed and made their way up the stairs, each stopping at their own bedroom.

As Gabriella went to change out of her daytime clothes she thought about what she and Troy would do when they snuck away later that night. As she looked inside of her suitcase she pulled out her turquoise and pink polka dot swim suit and decided to wear it underneath her matching Capri sweat pants and hoodie.

"Gabi, you coming?" Taylor called as she walked past Gabriella's door and knocked lightly on it.

Gabriella swung the door open, "Yep"

They made their way downstairs to find that they were the first ones back down. They began to help Mrs. McQue set the table for all eight of them while the others trickled in.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**_

"Mrs. M, that was absolutely amazing!" Chad complimented once they were all finished with dinner and dessert.

"I have missed homemade apple pie so much," Gabriella agreed.

"Apple pie with ice cream and chocolate syrup is one of my favorite desserts," Taylor commented.

"I'm sorry you were so filled up from dinner Troy, do you want some dessert now?" Mrs. McQue asked the only one who had declined the perfect combination of hot and cold dessert.

"That's ok, I'll get some later. I actually think I'm going to go for a run," Troy said aloud with a look at Gabriella.

Gabriella slightly nodded her head with a smile.

"Aw man! Why didn't you tell me before! I can't go now, I'd probably get sick," Chad complained.

"Sorry man, it was just kind of spur of the moment, I just remembered that we didn't work out yesterday and don't want to go two days without a good workout."

"Oh sure, just make me feel like a bad athlete!" Chad answered in a dramatic tone, "Can't you wait an hour dude?"

"In an hour it'll be completely dark out," Troy answered, "I'll try to warn you next time."

"Fine," Chad finally gave in, "I'll just go tomorrow."

"Alright, you guys can start whatever movie you chose without me, I'm not sure how long I'm going to go for," Troy said as he excused himself from the table.

Troy went to take his plate and silverware into the kitchen and then made his way upstairs to get changed again.

The others followed Troy's cue to stand up and began clearing the table while discussing what movie they wanted to put on.

"Let's do suspense!" Chad enthused.

"No way," Taylor countered, "How about a romantic comedy!"

Chad rolled his eyes as Luke joined the conversation, "How about just a plain old comedy?"

"That sounds good to me!" Lexie agreed, "I'm in the mood for a good laugh."

Once they were finished clearing all of the dishes off of the table the five remaining teens made their way into the living room to look over Lexie's movies and decide on one.

_Wherever you want me,  
Whenever you need me  
Whatever you're asking  
There's no need to ask it,  
I'll be on my way to get it done_

Gabriella heard her phone and smiled happily. Her friends all looked at her as she glanced at the caller ID and her face fell. She sent Luke a meaningful look.

"I have to take this," she said, "you guys can start the movie without me, I'm not sure how long I'll be."

Luke nodded his head letter her know that he understood what she meant as she flipped her phone open.

"I'm sure it was Logan. She told me the other day that he called again and he's really been on her case lately," Luke explained to the group.

"Should we see if everything's ok?" Taylor asked in concern.

"No, no, I'm sure she'll be okay. She wouldn't have answered if she didn't want to talk to him-right?"

"Yeah, that's true," Taylor agreed hesitantly before she smiled, "Alright, let's get this movie started."

Once Gabriella heard that her friends weren't going to worry about her and were indeed putting their movie on to enjoy themselves she stepped out the back door and spoke into her phone.

"Alright, I'm out!"

"It worked?!" Troy answered excitedly on the other end of the line, "Awesome! Ok, just go around the corner and I'll be out in…like two seconds!"

Gabriella giggled and smiled happily as she hung up her phone.

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_There's the next chapter! I'm SOO sorry that this one took forever! I hope it didn't let you down too much. The next one should not take this long to get out cause my head is already spinning with what I want to happen. Hope you enjoyed it!_

_Author Recommends: _**It Was More Than a Letter**_ by _**loveyoumeanitbye**._ This one isn't done yet, but it's really funny! It's different than the others I've recommended so far and I love it!_

_Oh yeah, for_kimi1234 _I changed my profile, so now all of the stories that I have recommended so far are my favorites! So all you have to do is go to my page and at the bottom where it shows what I've written just click the little thing on the right that says "Favorite Stories (7)" and all 7 of them will show up with direct links for you! Hope that helps!_


	21. Sneaking Away

_Hey guys! Alright for getting this chapter out so quickly! I really want to respond to all of the reviews, but I also just wanted to get this out there tonight. SO...I'm going to do big responses to the reviews from this chapter and the last one when I update next!_

_Enjoy dear readers! _

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Recap:**

"Alright, I'm out!"

"It worked?!" Troy answered excitedly on the other end of the line, "Awesome! Ok, just go around the corner and I'll be out in…like two seconds!"

Gabriella giggled and smiled happily as she hung up her phone.

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

**-Chapter 19-**

_-Sneaking Away–_

"Hey," Troy breathed as he came around the corner and wrapped Gabriella in a hug.

"Hey! You got out!" She returned as she squeezed him tightly back.

"Of course I did, did you ever doubt me?!"

Gabriella giggled as they pulled out of the hug and added with a small grin, "Maybe a little, those friends of ours can be quite inquisitive."

Troy just laughed and shook his head before he spoke again, "Come on, I know exactly where we're going," he told Gabriella as he grabbed her hand and began to pull her along a path with him.

"Troy!" She laughed, "Slow down, you're not actually going for a run."

Troy stopped in his tracks at her request which sent Gabriella jogging directly into him. They both groaned, but luckily Troy's strength held them up.

"Geez Gabs, you don't have to knock me over!"

"Hey, you're supposed to warn a girl when you're just going to stop like that."

Both had playful smiles on their faces when Troy spoke again, "Come on, it's just over here now."

They walked a little farther to a small carpeted deck surrounded by palm trees and looking out over the ocean. The deck had a wooden made couch, which had a huge king sized mattress as its cushion and over eleven pillows adorning it, making it completely inviting. A white canopy lay overhead giving the small spot even more privacy.

"Troy this place is great! How did you know it was here?!" Gabriella asked excitedly as she threw herself back into the pillows and enjoyed the comfort of the mattress beneath her.

"Well, when we were out exploring yesterday, I noticed it. I was walking with Lexie so I asked her what it was and she kind of explained it to me. Then, when I excused myself outside during dinner to talk to my mom on the phone, I came down here to check it out more," Troy explained as he joined Gabriella on the couch.

Gabriella sat up with her back against the pillows at one end of the bed. Troy lay stretched across the rest of the bed with his head resting on the pillows right beside Gabriella's lap.

Gabriella just stared out at the ocean as Troy stared up at her.

"How are things on the home front Gabs?" Troy asked, glad for the time to simply talk one on one with her again.

Gabriella shook her head a little as if shaking some thoughts away before she answered.

"Um…pretty good I guess. My mom was pretty bummed that I couldn't come home for break, but honestly, when I decided to come here for school we all knew that it would be a long shot for me to come home for any of the breaks besides winter really."

"Yeah, it must be hard for her with Izzy in her senior year, Jon moved out and married, and Mark and you away at school," Troy sympathized.

Gabriella loved the fact that Troy knew her whole family even though he had never actually met them.

"Exactly, she's already thinking about what she's going to do when Izzy graduates and it's only October."

"Yeah, my mom's thinking about when Leslie graduates too," Troy spoke about his younger sister and then added, "But she'll still have Wade to worry about after that and he's only a freshman so she has some time."

"Do you think our sisters would get along Tibs?" Gabriella wondered aloud as she glanced out over the ocean again.

Troy smiled thinking about the different instances they may meet in.

"I think they would. I mean, if they're anything like us they would," Troy said putting a smile on Gabriella's face. "How are things with Logan? I heard you tell Luke that he called again," Troy carefully ventured.

Gabriella frowned slightly as she allowed her eyes to connect with Troy's before speaking, "I don't know. I know that I want to be friends with him and I really thought that after almost two months we'd be able to be at that point, but we really aren't. He didn't call at all for so long and I missed talking to him and stuff, but honestly, with how busy we are at school, you don't have time to really miss too many people that much-ya know?"

"Yeah, I do. Like I totally miss my family and Zeke and Jason, but beyond them…" Troy trailed off.

"Exactly. So even though I felt bad that I didn't mind that we weren't talking, I actually enjoyed it. Then just a few weeks ago he called me and asked me to reconsider and said that he really misses me and he understands now that I need my space…etc, etc…but I told him that it wasn't that. Troy, even you know that I told him flat out that we just don't go together. Now he calls me almost every other day and leaves messages just asking me to reconsider," Gabriella poured her heart out to one of her best friends, to a guy who knew her better than almost anyone else.

"He makes you feel guilty," Troy concluded with a sympathetic smile as he pushed himself up to lie his head on her lap, "Gabs, you know you have no reason at all to feel guilty. If you want I can start checking your messages for you and then you won't have to know if he calls."

"Thanks Tibs...I actually might just take you up on that offer sometimes."

"_Any_ time. Hey," Troy changed the subject abruptly, "Let's go for a swim. You wore your suit like I told you to-right?"

"Of course! Let's go," Gabriella smiled.

Troy rolled over a couple of times until he was off of the large couch and then extended his hand to pull Gabriella forward.

Troy pulled off his T-shirt so that he was just in his athletic shorts and ran over to the side of the deck to pick up two towels for them. When he turned around Gabriella was already ready to go in her swim suit.

"Come on!" Troy called with one foot already in the sand.

Gabriella giggled and grabbed a towel from him as she ran past onto the beach. She dropped her towel a little above the water line, spread her arms as wide as they could go and ran into the water. She did a spin once she was knee deep, and fell backwards into the waves.

Troy just looked at her in amazement for a moment before going to join her.

A little while later they were making their way back up to the deck with towels wrapped around themselves. They bumped into each other playfully as they walked, both laughing the whole way.

"This day has been truly perfect," Gabriella decided as she took a seat in front of the big couch as not to get it wet.

"And it's not even over yet," Troy added with a grin.

"What are you up to Tibs?" Gabriella asked.

Troy just smiled at her and reached underneath the couch. He pulled out a small CD player and walked over to the edge again. He bent down and plugged it into one of the outlets and then flicked a small switch that made the outside edges of the deck light up with a string of Christmas lights.

Gabriella sat up Indian style as she looked around and allowed her ears to take in the music. It was _Start of Something New_. She then looked over at Troy, waiting for him to speak.

"Well, I figured that we wouldn't have an audience to sing to tonight, but I was still hoping that we'd get to sneak away so before we left," Troy began to explain as he walked over toward Gabriella, "I made a CD of all of the songs that we've sung together. I started with this one and then put on all of the ones from the Smoothie Lounge that we've done."

"I can't believe you even remember them all," Gabriella responded with a smile as bright as the stars above them.

Troy smiled and reached his hand out toward Gabriella, "Can I have this dance?"

"Why of course."

Gabriella took Troy's outstretched hand and allowed him to pull her in to a slow dance position.

As_Start of Something New_ ended and _A Whole New World_came on, Troy wondered if he should tell Gabriella what he was feeling at that exact moment. He pulled her a little bit closer and then heard the line, "When did you last let your heart decide?" Troy made up his mind.

Troy kissed the top of Gabriella's head that was leaning on his chest. Gabriella looked up and sent him one of her sweet, innocent smiles.

"You're beautiful Gabriella," Troy breathed.

"Troy. I-"but Gabriella never finished her sentence.

Troy had leaned in ninety percent of the way and all she had to do was go the last 10.

Gabriella smiled to herself as she, at last, let herself give in to her feelings and leaned up to meet his lips.

It was just a short, simple kiss.

The pulled away and both laughed lightly, not being able to hide their grins.

Gabriella laid her head back down on Troy's chest and he once again pulled her closer to him. They just stood swaying to the music, both content with everything in their world.

_It was a sudden wave after a Saturday  
It wasn't what she said, just the way  
And I felt so strange finding her right there  
And the way we changed has led to here_

Troy and Gabriella looked over to where Troy's pile of stuff was lying as if afraid that the ringing of the cell phone was real.

"You should probably at least see who that is," Gabriella finally spoke.

"Right," Troy sighed as he reluctantly let go of Gabriella and walked over to pick up the phone.

One glance at the caller ID was all Troy needed before he let out a frustrated groan.

"Yes?" He spoke into the receiver.

"Dude! Where are you?! You left to go running before we even started the movie! The movie's over and you still aren't back!" Chad answered on the other line.

"I-"Troy thought quickly, "I was running and got really hot so I just decided to take a dip in the ocean. I got a second wind after the swim so I decided to run a little more. No worries man."

"Alright, cool. You had me worried man," Chad responded, "Oh yeah, have you seen Gab while you've been out? She left to go talk to someone on the phone a while ago and she hasn't come back yet either. Lexie knows the island is safe, but the girls are starting to worry about her."

"Oh-" Troy thought for a second again before he spoke and decided to try to minimize his lies, "Yeah man, tell them not to worry. She's fine, I just passed her."

Troy purposefully walked past Gabriella as he said it so that he could convince himself that he wasn't lying to Chad more than necessary.

"Alright good. I'll let them know. Sorry to bother your run man, I know how much peace you like. I'll let you go now," Chad answered.

"Thanks dude, and thanks for checking in. I'll see you all soon and if I see Gabs on the way I'll try to bring her with me."

With that the two friends hung up.

Troy turned back to Gabriella who had now slipped her sweat suit back on since her bathing suit was dry.

"We better get going," Troy said sadly.

"Yeah, I kind of figured," She returned.

Troy went over, turned off the CD player, slid it back under the couch, turned the lights off, and then grabbed his shirt and threw it back on.

Gabriella waited for him by the edge of the deck and as he approached her he held out his hand for her to take.

She smiled at him as her feet once again hit the soft sand and she accepted his hand into hers.

"Now, how are we going to hide your wet hair?" He asked her smiling.

Gabriella giggled, "No worries, I have a plan."

"Don't you always," Troy mused with a glance over at her.

Gabriella looked back up and met Troy's eyes before she spoke.

"I'm glad the day wasn't over yet when I said that it was perfect."

"Me too," Troy agreed as he pulled on the hand of hers that he had been holding.

He pulled her in and kissed her softly one more time.

Gabriella sighed.

"I like doing that," Troy said as he rested his forehead on hers.

"I like you doing that," Gabriella responded smiling shyly.

They pulled their foreheads apart at the same time and finished the walk up to Lexie's house, hand-in-hand, in silence.

As they reached the corner before they could be seen by those inside the house Gabriella pulled her hood up with her free hand and tucked all of her hair into the hood.

"I'm going to go upstairs right away to dry my hair. Just tell them that I'll be right back down, I just needed a minute," She instructed Troy.

"You got it Cap!" Troy said as he nodded his agreement.

With that the walked around the corner and dropped each others hand unconsciously just before they become visible.

Troy slid the glass door open and stepped inside first. He walked through to the living room as Gabriella turned right and went up the stairs.

"Hey guys!" Troy greeted when he saw all of his friends sitting around the coffee table.

"Troy!" They all greeted together.

"How was the run T?" Lexie asked.

"Amazing," Troy answered with a grin, "You've got a great location here Lex. Thanks to the ocean I don't even have to go take a shower!"

Lexie and Taylor shook their heads and rolled their eyes as Luke and Chad just cracked up.

"Hey, did you find Gab again while you were out there?" Taylor questioned after the boys had calmed down a moment later.

"Oh yeah," Troy answered, feigning nonchalance, "I told her you guys would like it if she came back in. She ran upstairs; she said she just needed a minute."

"Alright!" Chad enthused, "Then we'll have even teams for Cranium!"

Luke then gestured to the game laid out on the coffee table, "You up for a game T?"

"I'm always up for a game," Troy responded as he took a seat on the floor.

As Troy was sitting down Gabriella bounced into the room happily with her hair in a loose ponytail on top of her head.

"Hi everyone," She smiled as she went to sit on the empty piece of carpet around the table, "Alright! We're playing Cranium?!"

"I guess that means Gabi's in!" Taylor laughed at her friend.

With that they discussed (and argued) about who should make up each team before spending the rest of the night talking, playing, goofing around, and just being…_them_.

**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_I sure hope that was a quick enough update! I'm sorry it wasn't as long as my chapters usually are, I just felt like that was a good place to end it. _

_Author Recommends: _**If Only for a Moment**_ by _**Jewel2502**._ I really, really liked this story! It gets frustrating at parts, but hey...if it can evoke emotion that makes a story good...right? lol, hope you all enjoy it too! _


	22. Mud

-I don't own HSM characters, any famous artists mentioned, singers, songs, movies, etc. I just own my plot and my original characters (Luke and Lex in this chapter).

This chapter is dedicated to all of the wonderful people who read, those who subscribe both favorites and alerts...I really hope it's living up to your expectations and hopes!

Also, it is dedicated to Dee31 (not only are you a wonderful friend, I'm glad that you liked the moment:-P), Angelic Ami (I'm glad you enjoyed that ending! I love their group friendship), kittykat0301 (Haven't heard from you in awhile girl! Hope everything is ok and just let me know about what we talked about! I'm so glad you're reading this!), src13 (I'll try to put the TIBS flashback in somewhere...I can probably make it work in one of my chapters, I think it'd be a fun addition! I just couldn't let them part with their Thursday nights, they mean too much to them! lol. I'm glad that you enjoyed their kiss!), KKK-DouBLe-KaeKae (HEY! I loved your double review/PM all in one! First, you definitely got my name right! Second, hooray for the mush being gone:-P I know, didn't their dessert sound delicious?! It's one of my favorites so they just had to have it! Thank you SO much! That was a huge compliment coming from you and I'm really glad that you liked how I wrote that all out!), ZacEfronIsHot (lol, thanks! I'm glad you thought so! Here's your update!), isaczac (No worries, the plan definitely didn't get spoiled...I'd say it worked out just perfectly! lol. Next, thank you on all three accounts! I'm seriously SO glad that you enjoyed it!), Kt luvs. (LOL! I just pictured someone sitting in a chair looking at the computer screen with a big smile, clapping their hands together...I'm so glad that I made you happy clap for them kissing!), em91011 (Aw, thank you SO much! It means a lot that you thought it was amazing! Sorry this was a long wait again. Break is coming up soon though so I really want to focus on getting a lot of chapters out quickly over that time), carito06 (I'm glad that you thought it was beautiful, what a sweet word! Here's the next part for you!), AlwaysReadTheLabel (You're so kind! Thanks so much for reading, and I'm so grateful that you liked it!), xxxNaley forevaxxx (Thanks, I'm glad you thought so! Ps, I'm a complete Naley fan too!!! Can't wait for that season to start!), Nattou (Thanks Caroline! lol, I'm SO glad that you thought so! I'll do my best to get you a private island ;-) I cannot think of anything prettier or more romantic at all...talk about an ideal first kiss eh?! Hope that you enjoyed those Troy & Gabriella moments!), bienbonita (lol! Keep me updated on your countdown to them getting together too! Haha, I should start including that at the end of each chapter ;-) I know, I like that their friends are clueless...the secret makes it more fun), frangipani675 (I'm glad you were freaking out too! lol...I wrote that scene out so quick because I was just like, oh my gosh! I know, I love this site now! Some people on here are SUCH good writers it's crazy!), evexl (Thanks! Humor makes the world go round in my opinion, so I'm glad that you enjoy those additions too! I couldn't keep that friction going on between Troy and Gabriella without an outcome any longer! lol. I hope you enjoy how things continue on, I love your reviews and they mean a lot to me. Jule and Jo really are great writers, I love reading their stuff!), charli quack (Hahah! Girl power fo sho! lol. Cranium is a GREAT game, you should totally bust it out again!), linklover26 (I'm glad you enjoyed it! I hope that you enjoyed chapter 21 too!), Line 101 (Hooray for you enjoying it! I think you'll enjoy the length of this chapter as well!), kimi1234 (I'm SO glad that it lived up to your expectations! Haha, I liked the nicknames too, I love thinking of different stuff like that. The whole Lexie/Luke thing you'll definitely has to see what's coming. I know...so helpful, aren't I? I'm glad that you could get to my rec's easier then...anything to help you put off homework more! Hahaha), Gummysweets (THANKS, THANKS, THANKS, THANKS!), babygal4real (glad you like it, hope you're enjoying the next chapters!), LivesInLove (Yeah, you really are that funny! lol. You're VERY welcome for the Troy/Gabriella moments! It was my pleasure...honestly:-P), and last, but certainly NOT least, 12superstar (You found the story just in time for another update! lol, I'm really glad that you're enjoying it!).

-sorry I couldn't bold/italic and underline the different names...my fanfiction is acting funny or something...

Alright...now I'm done talking and enjoy!

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"**I guess that means Gabi's in!" Taylor laughed at her friend.**

**With that they discussed (and argued) about who should make up each team before spending the rest of the night talking, playing, goofing around, and just being…**_**them**_

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**-Chapter 19-**

_-Mud–_

Taylor was once again positioned in the hammock in Lexie's room, reading her book, and enjoying the sound of the soft lap of the ocean waves. She had already put her swim suit on and gotten dressed for the day. Now she was just enjoying the peace and quiet before everyone else woke up.

As she was about to turn the page she heard her cell phone vibrate on the small table beside the hammock. Taylor turned the page, placed her bookmark inside the book, laid it down, and picked up her phone.

She smiled as she read the text message. She quickly typed a message back and then gently let herself out of the hammock before tip-toeing across the room so that she didn't wake her sleeping friends.

Taylor gently closed Lexie's bedroom door behind her and smiled at Chad as he came out of his room.

Chad looked at Taylor with a smile and then pointed down the stairs.

Once to duo was in the kitchen Chad spoke.

"I'm really glad you were awake," He said with a sigh as he sat down on one of the stools by the island, "I think Luke and Troy would have killed me if I woke them up early again!"

"I'm glad you texted me. My book is good, but I was beginning to get restless," Taylor responded as she took a seat next to him.

"Good. That makes two of us!"

"So…what should we do?" Taylor pondered as she looked around the kitchen.

"Hm, I guess we could get some breakfast and watch a movie…"

Chad and Taylor looked at each other and grinned.

"Nah!" They spoke together.

"We definitely need to do something that requires more movement," Chad decided.

"Agreed. How about we go explore the island some more! There has got to be more to this place than what we saw before," Taylor suggested as she mindlessly drew figure-eights on the counter with her finger.

Chad smiled broadly at her, "Perfect! Maybe we can even go swimming while we're out there! Maybe we'll find lions, and tigers, and bears-"

"Oh my!" Taylor laughed, "Chad…we're on a secluded island! I say swimming should definitely happen, but lions, and tigers, and bears? Definitely not. Let's just go out and see what adventure we can find."

"Way to burst a guys bubble!" Chad pretended to pout, "Do you always have to think so sensibly?"

"Yes!" Taylor stated as she stood up and put her hands on her hips, "It's a gift."

With that she turned around and started rummaging through one of the drawers in the island counter.

"What are you doing?" Chad asked as he stretched his back to try to look over the counter and into the drawer she was digging in.

"I'm writing a note," Taylor said as she pulled a piece of paper and a pen out of the drawer.

"Why? There's already a note right here."

"Huh?" Taylor asked.

Chad held up a piece of paper that had been sitting on the island counter-top when the two had come down.

"This, it's a note from Mr. and Mrs. McQue. They say…they had to get to the hotel early today so they left donuts on the counter and there's a breakfast burrito in the fridge for each of us."

"Oh, well that was nice of them," Taylor said with a smile, "But I was going to write a note so that everyone knows where _we_ went so that they don't freak out when they wake up and we're not here."

"Oooooh," Chad nodded in understanding, "Good call Tay."

Taylor rolled her eyes as she finished the note and laid it on the counter next to the one that was already there.

"There we go. Now, let's go explore!" Taylor said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

"I'm right behind ya!" Chad called as the two of them walked quickly to the front door.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCB**_

Lexie awoke the next morning and as she looked around her room she realized that both Taylor and Gabriella were already gone. She sat up slowly and smiled as she breathed in the familiar ocean scent and allowed the soft pitter-patter of the rain outside to drown out the sound of the ocean to her ears.

Lexie opened her eyes a little wider and decided that due to how bright it was outside she should probably get going.

A few moments later she was quickly bouncing down her stairs, ready for the day. As she turned into the kitchen she was greeted with three muffled hello's.

"Morning guys," Lexie laughed, "Where is everyone else?"

Troy pointed a finger at the counter as he, Luke, and Gabriella continued eating.

Lexie quickly skimmed the two notes before grabbing her breakfast burrito and joining the others at the table.

"So I guess Tay wrote the note from her and Chad?" Lexie asked with a smile.

The other three laughed as well.

"Well, since it's signed 'Tay & The Lunkhead' I'd say that's a good guess," Troy responded.

"They should be back soon though. I mean, the rain started coming down really hard about fifteen minutes ago and I doubt they would stay out in this," Gabriella commented.

"I wouldn't be so sure," Troy countered with a pointed smile at Gabriella, "You have no idea how persuasive Chad can be and he would love being out there in this."

Lexie and Gabriella shared a scared look and then said at the same time, "Oh poor Taylor!"

Luke and Troy both laughed at the girl's pity for their friend.

"She'll be fine," Luke said through his smile, "Trust me, even when Chad persuades you to do something stupid and that you don't actually want to do…he still somehow makes it fun."

"I'll definitely give him that," Troy nodded in agreement, and then added with a smile, "So, what do you guys want to do on this rainy day?"

"Well usually on days like this I just love to curl up on the couch and put a good movie in to start off the day," Lexie sighed contentedly.

"That sounds perfect," Luke agreed.

"Fine by me."

"Me too, we missed the movie last night," Gabriella agreed.

"We should so watch Ricky Bobby," Troy said with a smile, "Chad would be so mad if we watched that without him!"

Lexie laughed, "Oh my gosh! I have seen that movie _way_ too many times. The guys made me watch it so much in high school. No way!"

"Aw come on," Troy chided, "Luke, Gabs…don't you guys want to watch it?!"

Gabriella's confused facial expression spoke for her.

"Honestly, I've never seen it Troy. I saw previews and stuff, but…my old friends weren't really into that type of thing," Luke answered a little uneasily at the mention of his old friends.

"Fine…we won't watch it now, but Luke, dude…we're so watching it sometime when we get back!"

Lexie just shook her head at Troy's excitement and began to explain the premise of the movie to Gabriella.

"It's so stupid Gabi," she finished as they were shuffling through her DVD's to pick out the actual movie that they wanted to watch.

The four college students eventually agreed upon a romantic comedy. Gabriella and Lexie only had to do a small amount of whining in order to get the guys to agree, complaining that this was the only time they would get to because Chad would never let them. Troy and Luke, ever the gentleman, gave in with smiles.

Half an hour into the movie Troy was still stealing glances at Gabriella and giving her small smiles every time he could catch her eye. When he couldn't catch her eye, he just smiled to himself.

Unable to stand not talking to her, Troy finally stood up from the couch, rather abruptly.

"Does anyone want to play cards?" He asked in a determined voice.

Gabriella giggled at Troy's demeanor, but quickly responded, "I do!"

As Gabriella stood up from her chair and walked over to Troy, Lexie and Luke shared an amused look before both rolling their eyes and turning their attention back to the movie.

Troy and Gabriella decided to just play a game of spit/speed (a card came) and stay in the living room so that they could enjoy the rest of the movie as well.

Both sat Indian style on the floor facing each other with half the deck of cards in their hands.

"Oh you are so going down Tibs," Gabriella teased.

"Excuse me?! I can so take you."

"We'll see about that," Gabriella answered as she looked up to make sure that Troy's cards were set up, "SPIT!"

"Hey! That's not fair! I wasn't ready!" Troy complained as he watched Gabriella throw her card out and begin to place other cards on top of it.

"Troy! Put your card down, I can't just play on my own!"

Troy sighed and laid down a card next to Gabriella's already growing pile and began to throw his cards on top of both piles as well.

Troy was completely baffled as he watched Gabriella's hands fly to and from all of the cards; she was putting out two or three cards to his every one. So when Gabriella's hands suddenly stopped moving he looked up at her with wide eyes.

"You're insane! I could hardly get a card in!"

Gabriella grinned, "That's the point. Now hurry up and finish so we can spit again, that's all I can do right now."

Gabriella won their first hand easily and Troy suddenly had two thirds of the cards in his hand rather than just half.

As they were setting up their next hand, about an forty-five minutes into the movie, all four of the friends in the living room suddenly heard the back door slam open.

All four of them scurried over to the wall with wide eyes and had to laugh when they saw a mud covered, angry Taylor on one side of the door and watched as the door nearly whacked a confused, muddy Chad in the face.

Chad pushed the door open and yelled, "You DON'T have to SLAM the door in my face Tay!"

"I can't believe you did that Chad! I'm NOT talking to you for the REST of this vacation!" Taylor yelled as she walked toward the stairs.

"Well I'm not talking to you either!" Chad bellowed as he followed her up the stairs.

"That doesn't even make sense. You're the one that THREW me in the MUD!" Taylor yelled back, a small smile now playing on her face.

"Yeah well…it looked like fun! And I got in too anyway!"

"Ugh," Taylor grunted as she reached the last couple of stairs.

Chad reached up and grabbed her arm as it swung backwards.

"Tay," He said with sincerity.

"What?!" Taylor asked, trying her best to scowl at him.

"After we get changed…do you want to play some video games?" Chad asked with a huge, childlike grin.

Gabriella and Lexie's jaws dropped at the question and Troy and Luke both slapped themselves in the forehead in disbelief.

Taylor however, just rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Of course," she stated with a sigh.

And with that, they disappeared onto the second floor, both laughing.

Lexie rolled her eyes as she made her wake back over to the couch, Luke right on her heels. Troy and Gabriella went back to their previous places on the floor and began talking as they finished dealing out their hands.

"That was…the weirdest thing in the entire world," Troy stated.

"I know," Gabriella replied with a roll of her eyes.

"I just don't get it," He continued as he finished setting up his cards, "How can they be so oblivious to what's right in front of them?"

Not wanting to actually say that Taylor liked Chad, Gabriella thought of a diplomatic answer and responded, "I have no idea. It's so obvious that he likes her."

"Are you seious?!" Luke asked from the couch, now facing his friends rather than the television.

"Yeah, what? You don't think he likes her?"

"No, it's not that it's…" Luke looked at Lexie as if asking her for help.

They made eye contact and Lexie understood. She stood up from the couch and walked towards Luke, but spoke to Troy and Gabriella.

"Yeah, Taylor and Chade _are_ the oblivious ones, you're right," she said, sarcasm dripping off her every word.

Lexie then turned to a laughing Luke and smiled.

"You want to go outside and get a drink?"

"Absolutely," Luke said as he jumped off the couch.

The two turned and walked out the same doors Chad and Taylor had come through just moments before.

Troy and Gabriella sat in bewilderment for a moment before speaking again.

"Do you have any idea _what_ just happened?" Gabriella asked with her head tilted slightly sideways.

"No idea," Troy answered, "Let's just play our game…I think we're the only sane one's left in this house."

Gabriella giggled as the both finally turned their attention back to their game.

After two more rounds of staying focused on only the game, Troy's mind was running wild.

"Hey Gabs," He spoke.

"Yeah," She asked, still distracted by the cards in her hand.

"What are you doing Tuesday night when we get back to school?" He asked, as casually as possible.

Gabriella stopped setting up her cards and looked at Troy before she answered, "Um…I have to study for a quiz that I have on Wednesday. Why?"

"Well," Troy paused and bit the left side of his cheek, "Well…I was just wondering if maybe you would want to accompany me out on a…date?"

Troy mentally rolled his eyes at himself and his nerves. He had never been nervous to ask a girl out before. He always asked with complete confidence, as if he was doing the girl a favor by asking. For some reason, when he asked Gabriella, he was completely unsure-even after last night.

Gabriella smiled broadly and shrugged as she replied, "I think I could manage that."

Troy's eyes grew wide with his smile.

"Oh my gosh, Gabs, you have no idea how nervous I was to ask you that," He blurted out.

Gabriella giggled, "You didn't need to be, I told you last night-"

"Oh yeah," Troy began, all confidence back in his voice again, "You really like it when I do this…"

He leaned over their playing field of cards, leaning on his arms, and kissed her.

When they pulled back Gabriella bit her lip trying to lessen the smile on her face, while Troy just let his shine.

"Let's get back to this game," Gabriella suggested and gestured to the cards between them.

With one last glance into each others eyes, they smiled at each other and yelled together, "SPIT!"

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCBCBCBCB**__**CBCB**_

Upstairs Taylor opened the door to her bedroom to see Chad sitting on the floor next to the door just bobbing his head.

"Listening to something good?"

Chad looked up at her and smiled, "Yeah! I got this really good song in my head."

Taylor put her hand out to help pull Chad up and said, "Oh yeah? What song is that?"

"So Long Astoria by The Ataris," Chad responded as he continued to bounce his head around.

Taylor laughed as she could hear Chad lightly singing some of the words as they made their way down the stairs.

They poked their heads in to say hi to the rest of their friends and let them know that they were going to go to the game room to play some video games.

Lexie and Luke, who had just gotten back inside from getting their drinks out of the cabana just nodded their heads. Troy and Gabriella hardly even responded, apparently lost in their own world while playing the card game.

Chad and Taylor walked into the game room and sat down in front of the couch to pick out what game they wanted to play on which console.

"You know I was just kidding about being mad, right?" Taylor asked as they browsed through different games after deciding on playing the Wii.

"Yeah, I know," Chad smiled.

"It's just kind of fun to fight, for some reason I've always loved it. Drives other people crazy though," Taylor said.

"I know!" Chad agreed enthusiastically, "I've always been like that; a few times Troy got really pissed at me because I just kept trying to pick fights with him."

Taylor laughed out loud, "That reminds me of us in-"

"High school," they finished together, both smiling.

"So you really liked those comments we always made to each other?" Chad asked.

"I loved it! I loved making comments to or about you because I always knew that you'd have a good comeback," Taylor said, thinking back.

"Completely! I always loved when we would have classes together, or in homeroom because I could count on you for a good bickering session!"

"Well, it's good to know that even though we _thought_ we didn't get along back then, we really just didn't know each other."

"I wish we had been friends in high school Tay," Chad said somewhat wistfully.

"I know, but you and Troy were kind of dicks back then Chad," Taylor answered, no amusement in her voice.

"We weren't Dicks!" Chad defended himself and his best friend, "We just…Well I guess we didn't realize that other people could be fun to hang out with. I just assumed that basketball was what we did, so other people who enjoyed it would be the people I got along with. AKA cheerleaders and other jocks."

"Chad, I know you guys didn't mean to, but you two and your friends really made other people feel beneath you. You know some of those cheerleaders made one of my friends cry one day because they laughed at her outfit."

"Are you serious?!" Chad questioned in disbelief.

"Yep. Another time one of my friends was partnered with Zeke for a project and Zeke was really nice to him, but then he heard some of the guys on the basketball team laughing about how Zeke was getting off so easy because he just had a nerd doing his whole project for him. I don't know who all was there, but it really hit Martin pretty hard."

"Zeke definitely would not do that!" Chad automatically responded, "He's a good guy, and out of all of us he was probably the nicest back then. He actually cared about school too."

Taylor smiled a little bit as she responded, "I know. I was partnered with him for a project too, and he did more than his fair share of the work. After that he always made a point to say hi to me and we'd talk every now and then. Martin knew Zeke wasn't like that too, but it was those other guys. Real jerks a lot of the East High basketball team was."

"Ya know, as sad as it is, I actually have to agree with you there."

"What?!" Taylor asked, in shock, "I thought those guys were like your brothers or something. You, the rest of the basketball team, and the cheerleaders were together all the time."

Chad laughed roughly, "Nah, Troy, Zeke, J, and me were like brothers. Me and Troy met back in pre-school and then we picked Zeke and J up in middle school. Beyond them, I really didn't have any good friends in high school."

"But you were always with a bunch of people, always talking about weekend plans or this party or that party," Taylor countered.

"Yeah, but they were…well let's just say they weren't the party after the party type of friends. They were just the come for the main event and leave kind."

"Huh?" Taylor responded, not getting what Chad meant.

"I mean…ok, if we had a party in our apartment next weekend, the three of you would be there collapsing on the couches with us after everyone else left. Then in the morning you'd come back down for breakfast, if you didn't just spend the night, and help us clean everything up. You're good enough friends that after the party for _everyone_ you'd be the ones we would wind down with."

"Oooh," Taylor nodded her head, "Wow, that was a good analogy Chad, and I'm impressed."

She nudged him in the shoulder with her own and allowed herself to stay leaned against it.

"As for always talking about this party or that party," Chad continued, "You weren't listening very closely. It was always tradition that whoever the seniors were on the team were in charge of post game parties, but we never really went to any. When we were seniors, we took the tradition as it came and started taking turns hosting the parties. However, after two parties at each of our houses, the other two seniors just split up the rest of the games and the four of us only hosted once in a blue moon."

"Why?" Taylor asked, baffled once again. It always seemed to her that the four boys ran everything.

"Cause when we had the parties, there was no alcohol served. Nobody liked that very much, but we weren't willing to budge."

"How come?" Taylor asked next. She was truly shocked by this new revelation about the boys.

"Well…you see," Chad glanced over at Taylor trying to decide if he should tell her, "You see, Troy had a cousin named Sam. She was a senior when we were in sixth grade, right?"

"Ok?"

"Well, Sam was really cool. She wasn't a cheerleader; she was captain of_ her_ basketball team. Troy and I would always go to her games and she came to a lot of ours. She was like our hero back then, always playing basketball with us and Troy's grandpa. She'd show us all these cool moves and stuff."

Taylor looked at Chad intently, trying to put together all the pieces in her mind. Her steady, caring gaze encouraged him to continue.

"Well, one day," Chad paused and blinked his eyes tightly before he could go on, "I slept over at Troy's and when we woke up in the morning, we were running down the stairs to get our breakfast and when we reached the living room we just stopped dead in our tracks. Mr. Bolton was sitting on the couch with his eyes closed holding Mrs. Bolton. She was sobbing, absolutely sobbing. Her body was shaking and everything."

Taylor instinctively reached out and put her hand over Chad's to let him know that she was there and listening to his every word. When she saw him blink a couple of times and noticed the wet glaze over his eyes she turned so that she was fully facing him and moved so that they're legs were touching as she held both of his hands.

"Mr. Bolton told us that Sam had been found at one of her friends houses that morning. They thought she had just passed out, but then they realized that she wasn't breathing. She had died before they even got to her," Chad said, tears now evident in his brown eyes.

"Oh Chad."

"Apparently she was at a party and had been drinking and," Chad gulped as more tears poured out, "Someone had put some kind of drug into her drink and the mixture of the alcohol and the drugs…killed her. She had alcohol poisoning and her body just couldn't handle the drugs as well. She hadn't even been drinking and _driving_. She was just _hanging out_ at one of her _friend's_ houses. They had no clue who put the drugs in the drink, but it was probably one of her friends trying to help her loosen up. They never found out either, I mean, who would want to admit that they were the cause of Sam's death."

"Why didn't someone take her to the hospital?" Taylor asked gently.

Chad shook his head sadly, "Everyone else just figured she'd sleep off the alcohol like all of them were planning to do. It was horrible Tay. I can remember Mrs. Bolton's face like it was yesterday. I remember the pit in my stomach, just trying to grasp it. I remember seeing her lying in her casket. That night, Troy and I promised each other we would never _ever_ get drunk. We didn't want anyone to be able to do to us what they had done to Sam…and we never wanted to be the one's who put a drug into someone else's drinks."

"I had no idea," Taylor breathed.

"No one did. Since we were just in elementary school, by the time we got to high school the whole incident had been long forgotten by people our age," Chad explained, "But Troy and I obviously never forgot and when Zeke and Jason got drunk freshman year, we decided to tell them the whole thing the next day. It was so hard, but we knew we had to talk to them, because that night we were worried sick about them and didn't leave their sides the entire time. We couldn't risk the same thing happening to them that happened to Sam."

Taylor got up and just hugged Chad with all of her might.

"I had no idea you were so strong," She said into his ear as she held him.

Chad hugged back, thankful for someone to talk to who was so understanding and non-judgmental.

"I wish we were friends back then," was all he said back before they let go of each other.

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-If the end seemed random...I wanted to show both Chad & Taylor's relationship and a little of the guys past.

-If you don't know what the game SPIT is...it's a 2 player card game, kind of like solitaire, but you play against someone...let me know if you want more details. lol.

_Author Recommends: _**Three Rules** _by_**somewhereonlyiknow**._ This one is really unique! Hope it was a good pick for you all!_


	23. Getting Spoiled

**Chad hugged back, thankful for someone to talk to who was so understanding and non-judgmental.**

"**I wish we were friends back then," was all he said back before they let go of each other.**

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**-Chapter 20-**

_-Getting Spoiled–_

Lexie, Taylor, and Gabriella were all lying in bed after a long, relaxing day in which they just stayed on the island and kicked back.

After the rain had passed, the Triple Threat had spent some time laying out and soaking in the sun. The Three Musketeers allowed their male egos to take over for a little while once again and spent time playing various video games and then racing each other around the island on the McQue's personal jet ski's.

They decided to thank the McQue's for allowing them to stay and spent the early evening preparing dinner. After eating all together, the six friends decided to take some wood and make a bonfire down on the beach, at which they spent the rest of the night just talking, listening to music, having fun with sparklers, and taking a break from the stressful college life they were all used to.

Around 1:30 or 2:00 in the morning (no one was really sure what time it was), the gang decided to head in and went almost immediately to their various rooms. After changing, Taylor and Gabriella went to Lexie's room to slightly debrief the day together before they all fell subject to the tiredness that was over taking them.

As all three heads hit the pillows, Gabriella could no longer hold in what she had been since earlier that day.

"Um, guys?"

"Yeah?" Lexie responded.

"What's up Gab?"

"I just forgot to tell you…" She started nonchalantly and then paused, anticipating the reaction, "Um…Troy kind of asked me on a date today."

"WHAT?!" Taylor and Lexie both exploded as the top half of their bodies shot straight up.

Gabriella looked at them sheepishly.

"Gabriella! How could you not tell us something like that?!" Taylor asked first.

"He better have just asked you in a text or something…which would be lame by the way, but if we didn't know two seconds after he asked you, I'm going to be so mad," Lexie added.

"Well…" Gabriella bit her lip before she ran over and jumped on Lexie's bed.

Taylor did the same, all three facing each other and ready for some good girl talk.

"Ok, well you know when we were playing Spit?"

"Yeah"

Gabriella laughed, "Well it was right after you and Chad came in, when you guys were upstairs…and when you and Luke were outside getting drinks. We were just setting up a new hand and Troy was just like, 'Gabs?' and then after I just asked what he said, 'What are you up to the Tuesday night after we get back?' Well that of course got my attention! So I told him that I had to study for a quiz that I have on Wednesday,"

"You did not!" Lexie interrupted with a surprised expression, "Gabriella! You told Troy you couldn't go out with him because you have to study for a _quiz?_"

"Just listen! I went on to tell him that it wouldn't take very long. Then he said, 'Well…I was just um…wondering if maybe you would, want to accompany me on a date?' It was so cute and he looked _really_ nervous."

This of course earned her a collective "Aww" from her roommates.

"Well, then we teased a little about it and I told him that I could probably manage it…and then he," She paused again and bit her cheek in order to once again try to stop the wide grin that was pulling to break onto her face, "kissed me!"

"Gabriella Eve Montez! How did you wait this long to tell us?!" Taylor yelled.

"Taylor, be quiet! He's going to hear you and then know that we're talking about it," Gabriella scolded with a smile.

"Oh please, the only thing that'll happen if that boy knows we're talking about him is his head will get bigger," Taylor returned.

"Hey! He doesn't have a-"Gabriella started defending Troy.

"Gab, you know we love the guys, but they have big heads, they know it too and it's even rubbing off on Luke! Now, _why_ didn't you tell us?!" Lexie interjected.

"Because, I didn't want to sound like the boy obsessed teenager that I just did," Gabriella answered.

"Oh please, you can worry about that with everyone else, but with us, you freak out girl! You should have known that we would freak out with you!" Taylor answered.

"Yeah, you're not immature, you're just excited," Lexie answered.

The three girls continued their conversation, discussing what Troy and Gabriella may do on their date and then allowing the conversation to turn to other various topics before they all ended up falling asleep on Lexie's big queen sized bed.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB CBCBCBCBCB**_

Troy stretched his body out with a yawn as he slowly woke up on Saturday morning. As he began to gain consciousness a grin slowly crept onto his face. There was nothing stopping him now. He was still on Fall Break with some of his best friends, he didn't even have to think about school work for another three days, Chad hadn't woken him up early for the second day in a row, and shortly after he got himself up, he knew he would get to see Gabriella's face.

Reminding himself to thank Lexie for inviting them all here, Troy slowly pulled himself off the bed and walked over to his window to check the weather for the day. As he walked a few steps closer he could hear laughing and splashing. When he reached the window he smiled again seeing Taylor, Gabriella, Lexie, and Chad in the pool. After watching for a few moments he began to laugh as he realized that they were playing a game of three on one basketball.

Just a few minutes later Troy was pulling the glass doors open as he stepped out onto the back patio.

"Oh! What now Chad?!" Lexie yelled.

"Yeah, I thought you could take us!" Gabriella added.

"That was one point guys!"

Troy found the conversation and scene in front of him rather amusing and showed it with a low chuckle.

All four of the heads in the pool turned to where he stood.

"Ya know, even in a three on one game, I'm still putting my money on Chad," he teased with a smile.

"That's right, bro's for life!" Chad agreed as he swam over to the edge to high five Troy good morning.

"Hey!" All three girls protested together.

"We're pretty good!" Gabriella insisted, smiling broadly at Troy.

"Yeah, Gabriella's made like five baskets," Taylor added grabbing the basketball from her place near the net.

"That's because you guys were cheating! I couldn't really defend her so well with you on my back and Lexie grabbing my hands and trying to dance with me," Chad countered.

Troy laughed heartily, "It sounds like you guys were playing defense when you were on offense! How about we make this game a little more even? I say Chad and me against the three of you."

"Oh yeah, because that's _so_ fair," Taylor answered sarcastically as Troy stepped into the pool.

"Come on Tay, we can take them!"

"Lexie's right," Gabriella agreed while flashing both boys an evil smile, "It's so on and you two are so going down."

"Oh, Montez has got some attitude!" Chad laughed as he swam over and stole the ball from Taylor's hands, "We get ball first, there's only two of us."

"No way!" Taylor called as she swam over and hit the ball out of his hands and right over to Gabriella, "We get ball first, none of us are on the USC basketball team!"

With that Gabriella quickly checked the ball with Troy and the play began.

An hour later the game had long ended, with Troy and Chad coming out clearly as the winners. As the five made their way back into the house after drying off they spotted Luke sitting at the island counter talking with Mr. McQue while Mr. McQue moved around the kitchen.

"Dude, why didn't you join us?" Troy asked as they all situated themselves around the kitchen.

"Well, it looked like the two of you had the game pretty much under control," Luke said with a smile, "Plus Mr. M was already up and cooking so I thought I'd see if I could give him a hand."

"Aw, aren't you just a sweetie?" Lexie teased as she nudged him with her shoulder from the stool beside him.

"You're such a kiss up man," Chad added with a grin.

"Alright, alright, brunch is ready. Everyone grab something and head on over to the table," Mr. McQue cut into the conversation.

Without another word, the young adults each grabbed a dish or place setting and made their way to the table. As if on cue Mrs. McQue walked up the stairs from the bedroom she shared with her husband and joined everyone else at the table.

"So what are you guys up to today?" Mrs. McQue opened the conversation.

"Well, I don't know what we're doing for the day, but I definitely want to go out tonight for a little while and show these guys our town at night. Then the guys all wanted to come over to play a good game of Jail Break. I got a call from Ty this morning and he said that they were doing their best to stay away, but with me being home they just couldn't do it any longer," Lexie answered.

"Aw, they didn't have to stay away on account of us being here," Gabriella responded with a sympathetic frown, "They're really cool, I'm sure we'd all love to have them around."

At that the three McQue's all let out laughs.

"Oh no Gabriella, they aren't staying away because you guys are here. They are doing their best to stay away because we used to have to chase them home, some of them even when Lexie went up to school. The eight of them started hanging out here so much that it was feeling like we had nine kids instead of one," Mr. McQue said.

"Don't get us wrong, we love all of the boys, but it sort of became our little joke that it took everything in the boys to stay away from here for more than twenty-four hours. The longest they ever made it was seventy two hours. It was quite amusing actually," Mrs. McQue added.

"So now, especially since I'm home and they know that I don't get to see my parents much they were trying to stay away and give us some quiet around here. I hope you guys don't mind that they're coming over again tonight though," Lexie said.

Gabriella, Taylor, and Luke all quickly responded with "of course not" or "it'll be good to see them again!"

Lexie saw the slightest flicker of fear pass over both Chad and Troy's faces before the two best friends also agreed that it was okay…with a little less enthusiasm.

"It'll be good to see Marc again and get to catch up with him some more. He's such a chill guy," Troy added when he noticed the skeptical look Lexie was giving him.

"Good, they won't be coming over until late though. They may meet us while we're out, but they'll probably just come here and get ready while we're gone. They take Jail Break _very_ seriously," Lexie said before she scooped her last fork full of her eggs into her mouth.

"Well, if you kids don't have plans for today, how about you let the two of us spoil you a little bit?" Mrs. McQue now asked.

"Aren't you already spoiling us?" Gabriella ventured after she swallowed her last bit of orange juice.

"Yeah, home cooked meals whenever we're hungry," Chad started.

"Letting us stay in your beautiful home," Taylor continued.

"And giving us free reign of it," Troy added.

"Not to mention free reign of your hotel as well," Luke finished for the group.

Lexie stole a glance at her parents smiling faces and laughed as she stood up from her chair, plate and glass in hand.

"You guys haven't seen anything yet," She said to her friends as she walked away from the table and into the kitchen.

_**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB CBCBCBCBCB**_

"Lexie, stick your head up a little farther!" Mrs. McQue called.

"How about if I just put my hands on top of the guy's heads, that way you won't be able to tell that I'm keeping Chad's hair out of her face?" Gabriella asked as she wrapped her arms around Troy and Chad laying her hands atop their heads.

The six friends were once again piled into Chad's jeep, but this time the girls had decided that they had to take a picture, since Mr. and Mrs. McQue were now along to play photographers.

"Hey! It's not my fault!" Chad said, turning to Gabriella and making a face at her.

Troy caught this out of the corner of his eye and couldn't help, but laugh at his childhood friend's extremely childish face. His laughter seemed to be contagious as soon, all six of them were laughing.

"Ok, would you all hold still?" Mrs. McQue now asked. She had one camera in her hand and another around her wrist.

Mr. McQue stood beside her, laughing along with the teens just clicking away with the camera in his hands.

"Alright, on the count of three, everyone just smile. Alright ready…one, two, three," Mrs. McQue finally took the picture, "Perfect! That one came out just right. Alright, just one more with this one and then we'll get going."

"Hey Tay, do I have something in my teeth?" Lexie asked, turning to her left and clenching her teeth together with her lips apart.

"Nope, you look good," Taylor answered happily.

As Lexie turned back around, Chad turned with his usual smart remark, "That's a matter of opinion. I don't know _what_ you were thinking when you got dressed today Lex."

"Chad!" Gabriella yelled as she turned to her left and slugged him in the shoulder with her right arm.

"That I wish I had better looking friends than you!" Lexie answered simultaneously, whacking the right side of Chad's head.

"Chad Michael! That was so rude!" Taylor yelled, also at the same time, standing up in the back seat and smacking the left side of Chad's head.

"Joke! It was a joke," Chad defended with his hands in the air, head rotating to look at each of the girls.

Troy and Luke burst out laughing as Mr. McQue looked down at the small screen on the camera in his hands.

Turning to his wife to show her the picture he said, "That's got to be the best picture they've taken all weekend!"

Mrs. McQue rolled her eyes laughing as she finally took another picture of the now smiling six.

"Ok Chad, now you're just going to follow us. It's not that far so we shouldn't loose you or anything," Mr. McQue instructed.

"Aye, aye Sir! Those scooter things are pretty sweet by the way," Chad replied, motioning to the motorized scooter's the parents were driving.

"Well, they're much easier to park and maneuver around here," came the response before the whole group took off down the block.

Ten minutes later they zoomed into a side parking lot along the beach and all got out, or off, of their various transportations.

Without a word Lexie and her parents made their way to the front of the building and entered through a glass door, earning a small ring from the bell hanging over head.

"Hey SunnySide!" Lexie yelled to a man in the back of the store.

A middle-aged man with a slight belly came out from behind a counter to greet the group.

Taking Mr. McQue's hand and giving it a good shake Sunny finally spoke, "Well, if it isn't my favorite family! Welcome back Lex, we've missed you around here. Some of those buddies of yours have been keeping me company though."

As the conversation continued, Chad, Taylor, Gabriella, Luke, and Troy were standing in the background simply looking at the store that they had entered. One entire wall was an aquarium, tropical fish of every kind swimming together. The other wall had a large mural, but due to the underwater diving equipment hanging on it, the picture depicted by the mural was not clear. Around the store hung, SCUBA, snorkeling, and boating equipment.

"Alright, everyone follow me," Sunny instructed, breaking the others free from their thoughts.

"Where are we following him to?" Luke whispered to Lexie as the group now made their way through the shop and out a door in the back.

"The ocean!" was Lexie's giggly reply.

Outback four boats were attached to a small dock. Anchored further out into the ocean was a double decked pontoon, complete with a slide on the second level.

Sunny surveyed the four small boats attached to the dock before turning and surveying the group following him as well.

"Okay, you four come with me," He started, pointing in the general direction of Gabriella, Taylor, Luke, and Troy, "and the rest of you can take that one." He finished by pointing to the small red boat on the left side of the dock.

Once everyone was situated into the boats Sunny led the way, droving his boat right up to the large pontoon, and stopping beside a ladder. He allowed his four passengers to climb up the ladder before taking the boat a little away from the pontoon. Mr. McQue followed his lead and allowed his passengers to make their way up the ladder too.

After the two men had let anchors down they jumped into the water and both swam the short distance back to the pontoon.

"Alright, you can all relax now and I'll get us on our way," Sunny instructed before he began moving around the boat.

"Come on guys, let's go upstairs and then I'll explain what we're doing," Lexie said to her friends as she gestured to the stairs in the middle of the boat.

Once the six got to the top of the boat they situated themselves around the white vinyl seats that took the shape of three sides to a square (the fourth side to the square contained an opening in front of the slide that would shoot it's occupants off the pontoon and into the water).

"Alright Lex, what is going on? Who is that guy?" Luke asked.

Lexie laughed before responding, "Oh, that's Sunny. He's lived around here since I can remember. We've known him since my parents first started the hotel. He's a SCUBA instructor and that shop he owns is for people to come and get SCUBA and snorkeling tours out to Catalina Island from him…which is what we're doing."

"We're going snorkeling?!" Taylor asked excited, sitting up and leaning forward as she asked.

"Yep! I didn't think you all would want to take the time to go through SCUBA training so we were planning on just snorkeling. Is that okay?"

"Okay?! That's awesome! I've never been snorkeling before, I didn't know that you guys had good snorkeling environments around here," Gabriella answered.

"Well, we do. It'll take us a little while to get out to Catalina so we can do whatever we want to on the boat until then. There's a table downstairs and we have cards and stuff, or we can just hang out up here," Lexie said, spreading her arms out and really taking a moment to look out over the ocean she was so familiar with.

"I say we just hang out up here," Chad said, "I got my shades on, my friends by my side and a wide open ocean surrounding me. What more could I want?"

"Sun block?" offered Taylor with a grin, which of course with this group of people got the conversations rolling.

Ten minutes into the boat ride Chad, Luke, and Gabriella had decided to make their way downstairs to find drinks and left Taylor, Troy, and Lexie alone on the second deck.

"So Troy," Taylor started with a knowing grin.

"So Tay," Troy answered back, as if daring her to continue.

"What are you up to this Tuesday?" she took the dare and continued.

"Oh you know," Troy answered nonchalantly with a smile, leaning his head back to look at the sky and resting his arms on the back of the seats, "I figured I'd go to class, do some homework, the usual."

The two girls couldn't help, but laugh at the stupid grin spread across Troy's face as he answered.

"Troy Bolton!" Lexie yelled, and continued when Troy finally lifted his head and smiled directly at his two friends, "Alright, now tell us, do you know where you're taking her yet?"

"Well I-"

"Are you thinking fancy or fun?" Taylor interrupted before he could continue.

"Well I'm still debating. I honestly didn't think that we'd be going on a date this soon," Troy answered truthfully, "But I really want it to be a fun date. I want it to be really relaxed and just…not nerve racking."

Taylor and Lexie smiled at each other before turning their attention back to Troy.

"I think that's a great idea Troy," Taylor answered, "I think that Gabi would appreciate that."

"Honestly guys," Troy continued, his face suddenly more serious than they were used to, "I'm really afraid I'm going to mess this up or rush her into something. I don't want her to feel like she has to go out with me. That's why I thought I'd just ask her on a date. That way we can see how that goes and just take it from there. After everything that she and I have talked about, I really want to learn from her relationship with Logan and not build a 'more than friends' relationship just on not wanting to hurt each others feelings. I want it to be real. I want both of us to actually want it to happen."

The two girls smiled warmly at Troy, both happy yet surprised with his openness.

"You really like her, huh?" Taylor commented.

"More than you know," Troy answered, "Tay, do you remember how I used to date so many girls in High School?"

"Yeah?" Taylor answered, not understanding where Troy was going with his question.

"Well, do you remember how many girls I dated the second half of our senior year?"

"Actually Troy, I didn't really feel the need to keep track of your dating life back then. Sorry," She answered half sarcastically.

"Well, think hard, we were in the same homeroom…"

Taylor thought for a moment before it struck her, "Wait, you didn't date anyone second semester! I remember having to listen to practically every girl in our school talking about how you must have decided to hold off for only college girls or something."

Troy had to laugh at that, "Well, it was really just one college girl and at the time she was still in high school. All through high school I just dated whoever. Usually I tried to go for girls who were dying to fit in or who I heard some people making fun of behind her back. I knew if I dated her people would leave whoever the girl was alone. I never really liked anyone before so I figured, 'what could it hurt dating some random girl for a few weeks just to boost her self-confidence?'"

"Man Troy, I'm glad you weren't cocky at all," Lexie responded with a roll of her eyes, "You knew that dating you would boost a girls self confidence?"

Troy laughed slightly, "Well, I never said that I liked that it was that way. Anyway, over winter break of our senior year I went on vacation to this ski lodge. That's where Gabriella and I met for the first time. That's how we knew each other before school. When I went back to East High I swore that I wasn't going to just date random girls who I didn't like anymore. It was like I realized how I could feel about someone. Anyway, I knew that if I ever got the chance to date Gabs, I would take it in a heartbeat so I didn't want to take any chances of messing that up by dating some other random girl."

"You have liked Gabriella for almost a whole year?" Lexie questioned, surprised expressions on both she and Taylor's faces.

"Well when you put it that way I sound really pathetic," Troy answered in a pout, "But yeah, I guess I have. You better not tell her that though! It would freak her out, and not a word about this to the guys!"

"No worries Troy, your secrets safe," Lexie answered.

"And for the record, I think that is absolutely adorable. Somehow, you and Chad just continue to surprise me. Six months ago I never would have thought you were both such good guys," Taylor said.

Troy genuinely smiled at the two girls as he stood up from his seat, "Well thank you. Now, let's head down and join those other three. All this talking made me really thirsty!"

The girls laughed again as they followed Troy down the stairs and towards the front of the ship where the other half of their group of six were talking with Sunny and the McQue's.


	24. Huntington at Night

"**No worries Troy, your secrets safe," Lexie answered.**

"**And for the record, I think that is absolutely adorable. Somehow, you and Chad just continue to surprise me. Six months ago I never would have thought you were both such good guys," Taylor said.**

**Troy genuinely smiled at the two girls as he stood up from his seat, "Well thank you. Now, let's head down and join those other three. All this talking made me really thirsty!"**

**The girls laughed again as they followed Troy down the stairs and towards the front of the ship where the other half of their group of six were talking with Sunny and the McQue's.**

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**-Chapter 21-**

_-Huntington at Night–_

"That was incredible," Gabriella gushed as she began to climb the ladder back onto the pontoon.

"Completely," Troy agreed, extending his hand to help pull her the rest of the way up.

"Have you ever done anything like that?" Gabriella continued, taking his hand and climbing the rest of the way into the boat.

Troy glanced over his shoulder and made eye contact with Chad, both boys' smiles growing by the millisecond.

"Just once," Troy answered.

"Alright guys, you can all set your snorkels, fins, goggles, and vests on the benches. We won't put them away until everything's dried out," Sunny instructed.

Lexie was the first to put all of her belongings down and then made her way to talk to her parents in private.

"You guys can head upstairs, I'm just going to talk to my parents for a minute down here," Lexie called as she saw her friends approaching.

"What's going on Lex?" Rick McQue asked once he saw his daughter's friends were out of ear shot.

"Well, I was thinking. Since we're already out at Catalina, why don't we go over to Scram's? I think they would all love it and as far as I know none of them have ever been before," Lexie explained.

"Hunny that's a great idea!" Mrs. McQue agreed, "I'll just go talk to Sunny and see how much time he has."

"I have as long as you need me for," Sunny interjected, having caught the tail end of the conversation.

"Yes!" Lexie yelled as a broad smile spread across her face, "This is going to be amazing. I'm going to go up and tell them!"

With that Lexie turned and ran up the stairs to the small upper-deck where Taylor, Gabriella, Chad, Luke, and Troy were all sitting.

"Is everything okay Lex?" Gabriella asked as soon as she saw Lexie's head coming up the stairs.

"Everything's great! How much do you guys love me?" Lexie asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows as she took a seat on the slide.

"Um, is that a trick question? I feel like that's a trick question," Chad answered.

Lexie just laughed, "No you dork it's not a trick question."

"Well then…we love you a lot!" Chad answered once again.

"Well get ready to love me a whole lot more! Guess where we're going now!"

A chorus of "uh" and "um" in conjunction with some shoulder shrugs and confused faces prompted Lexie to continue.

"Scram's!" Lexie yelled, more than excited to see her friends' reactions.

"Awesome!" Chad yelled, clearly as excited as Lexie until a look of confusion overtook his grin, "Wait, I don't even know who Scram is."

Troy took one look at Chad and shook his head laughing, "Dude, I was wondering why you were so excited."

"Sorry Lex, we really want to be excited too, but I'm pretty sure that none of us know who or…what Scram is," Taylor spoke up, giving Chad a pointed look as she said the word _none_.

"Oh! I'm so sorry guys. Scram is Sunny's brother! He owns a parasailing shop, we're going parasailing," Lexie explained further.

"No way!" Troy, Chad, Luke, Gabriella, and Taylor all said at the same time.

"Yes way! That's why I'm so excited. He has a single and a double, but I think we should do the double, it's a lot more fun to be with someone else."

"I concur," Gabriella quickly put in, "It sounds amazing, but I think if I went by myself I'd get scared being that high above the water and everything."

"No worries Gabs, I'll protect you," Troy promised as he scooted his body a little closer to hers and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Well I guess Troy and Gab will be one set of doubles," Chad threw in, "Tay, do you want to go together?"

"Sure Chad, I'll keep you safe," Taylor smirked.

"Hey! I wasn't –" Chad retorted, sitting up in his seat and fully facing Taylor.

"I'm just kidding!" Taylor assured him as she patted him lightly on the shoulder.

"Guess that leaves you and me sunshine," Lexie said.

Luke wiggled his eyebrows and smirked, "Lucky you!"

All three members of the Triple Threat preceded to role their eyes.

"Ok, Luke has officially spent way too much time with you two," Taylor jeered with a wave of her finger toward Troy and Chad.

**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**

After the afternoon out on the boats Mr. and Mrs. McQue had treated everyone out to an early dinner at one of their favorite local restaurants before they had to go back and do some work at the hotel for the rest of the evening.

The six amigos decided to go back to Lexie's house and get cleaned up before heading to the Huntington Beach boardwalk for the evening.

"I'm so excited to take you guys out to the boardwalk, since it is October it won't be very crowded because a lot of the people out will just be locals," Lexie explained.

"I don't care how many people there are, I've never been to a real boardwalk at night," Gabriella commented, "My mom likes it cold so we always ended up in the mountains for our vacations."

"Hey, at least your family went on vacations Gab," Luke replied.

The next hour was spent getting cleaned up, changing clothes, getting slightly more "dolled" up than normal, and playing video games; video games being for the three boys who took a total of twenty minutes to do the first three.

The girls had each decided to wear jeans, flip-flops, and tank tops. Per Lexie's instructions on being near the beach at night they had all grabbed hoodies to carry with them as well. To make the night more fun they had each taken some time to put a little bit of make-up on and re-do their hair.

After dragging the guys away from an "intense game" (as Chad put it) of Mario Kart, they were finally on their way across the familiar piece of water to the main land.

"So, what's your favorite thing to do at the boardwalk Lex?" Taylor asked.

"My favorite? That's a tough choice," Lexie began as she took a moment to ponder her answer, "Well; during the day it would have to be shopping. These are some of the best beach shops around. At night, it's just the whole atmosphere. Sometimes me and the guys would just go sit and watch people while they walked around. It could be very entertaining."

"My favorite thing about boardwalks is the arcades," Chad added to the conversation.

"How shocking," Taylor mumbled, earning laughs from all of the other companions.

"I love the mini-golf and ice cream," Troy laughed.

"Ice cream?" Gabriella questioned excitedly, just as the boat met with the shore.

"Oh yeah Gabs! All boardwalks have killer ice cream. I'm sure that this one won't disappoint us," Troy said, sending a smile in Gabriella's direction.

All six continued talking as they piled out of the boat and made their way toward the front of the hotel.

As everyone was walking toward the boardwalk Luke grabbed Gabriella's arm and pulled her back behind the rest of the group.

"What's up?" Gabriella questioned in a peppy tone.

"Nothing, we just haven't really had the chance to talk much since we've been here so I thought I'd steal you away when I had the chance," Luke answered.

Gabriella genuinely smiled at her friend and linked her arm through his.

"I know, it's so crazy how we can spend so much time together, but not really get the chance to actually talk to just each other," Gabriella agreed, "So, isn't all of this simply incredible?"

"Absolutely," Luke answered, "Sometimes it all just feels like a dream, you know? I miss being on the farm and the cold weather of ND, but I love it here and to be honest I can't imagine going back. Is that horrible of me?"

"Not at all! I know that you miss your family Luke and I know that if they ever needed you, you would be back on that farm for them in a heartbeat, doing whatever needed to be done. However, you don't have to want to stay there for the rest of your life. That was a decision both of your parents made for themselves, I'm sure they're going to want you to do the same," Gabriella encouraged.

"Thanks El, I still don't know what I would do without you here. I mean, even with all of them," Luke said and gestured to Chad, Troy, Taylor, and Lexie, "I couldn't imagine all of this without you. It's nice having someone who knows my past…who has been to my house and knows my family."

"I agree. You have no idea how much it means to me that you know the Gabriella pre-USC and now. I feel like we've gotten to _really_ get to know each other the past few months and I love that we can have real intellectual conversations and just goof around with each other too," Gabriella said, giving Luke a small nudge at the end.

Luke studied Gabriella for a moment before speaking again, "Hey, question."

"Shoot."

"Does it bother you when I call you El or Ella sometimes? I try not to because I know that's what Logan called you too, but sometimes it just slips out," Luke said.

"It doesn't bother me at all. Actually, it's kind of nice because that's what I was so used to being called before. All three of you called me that, and most of our teachers as well."

Luke breathed a small sigh of relief, "Okay, good! I was afraid you were going to start getting mad at me."

Gabriella laughed and looked up ahead to where her friends had been moments before, only to realize that they were now gone.

"Hey, where did they-"

"Omph…"

"Boo!"

"Ah!"

Gabriella was cut off as she saw, out of the corner of her eye, someone jump on Luke's back just before she felt someone else come up and grab her around the waist. At the very same time she heard two people yell "Boo" and saw two silhouettes jump in front of them.

After taking a couple of seconds to let everything "click" Luke and Gabriella both started laughing.

Chad and Taylor both started walking again, laughing as they went at the looks on both Luke and Gabriella's faces. Lexie stayed happily on Luke's back as Luke began to walk. Troy swung Gabriella around by the waist once before setting her back down so the two could catch up with everyone else.

**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**

Gabriella, Taylor, and Lexie walked out of their fifth swimwear shop for the evening. Their male counterparts had quickly volunteered to go find ice cream when they realized that the girls were heading inside.

"So, do you think those lunkheads actually got us ice cream, or do you think they ended up in that arcade we saw a little while ago?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella and Lexie both laughed as they pondered Taylor's question.

"I say Chad tries to sway them into an arcade," Gabriella said.

"Yeah, then Luke and T will end up going to get it by themselves and have to meet Chad back at the arcade," Lexie agreed.

The girls continued to talk as they walked in the direction of the arcade. They made their way slowly, each enjoying the others company in such a relaxed setting, away from the hustle and bustle of school.

None of the girls could hold in their laughs however, when they came upon the arcade and low and behold Chad's afro was sticking out overtop of the other heads inside. As they followed Chad's afro as if it were the North Star they eventually spotted Troy and Luke as well. Troy and Chad were playing a game of "Hot-Shot" basketball as Luke watched from the side. At Luke's feet sat six cups of ice cream, each with a lid securely on its top.

"They are way too predictable," Lexie said to the other two girls.

"Well it's a good thing we're not then," Gabriella said with a devious smile before running between the un-expecting Troy and Chad and effectively blocking both of their shots.

Lexie, Taylor, Luke, and Gabriella all laughed as the two guys automatically yelled, before their faces turned to that of shock as they faced little, innocent Gabriella.

"Gabs," Troy yelled as he quickly began shooting again, "That was so rough!"

"I'm sure you'll survive superstar," Gabriella replied.

As soon as the two basketball players finished their faceoff, the six made their way back outside. They decided to take a walk down to the end of the pier and enjoy their ice cream with a view of the Pacific Ocean. Troy reached the end of the pier first and sat down, allowing his feet to dangle over the water and leaning his arms on the railing. The other five followed suit.

As they sat and enjoyed their boardwalk ice cream, they began reminiscing about their previous couple of months and the way that their friendship came to be. Once everyone was finished eating and they had allowed the ice cream to settle in their stomachs for some time, they collectively decided to head back to the hotel.

Lexie's cell phone began ringing just when the group arrived at the hotel.

"Hey Marc," Lexie said in greeting. "What's up?"

Lexie continued her conversation and the group made their way through the hotel and out the back of it. Lexie closed her phone as they were passing by the pool.

"What's going on?" Gabriella asked.

"Oh, Marc said that the guys are over at the house already. Are you guys up for a game of Jail Break still, I know it's been a long day."

Everyone agreed that a game of Jail Break would be fun, especially when they had an entire island to play on and no neighbors to yell at them. Troy and Chad explained that they used to play at Zeke's house, but more times than one the cops had been called for trespassing, seeing as Zeke's yard alone was not big enough.

"But what are we going to where?" Chad asked. "It is only acceptable to play Jail Break if you're wearing complete black."

"I love that Chad is the first one to worry about what we're going to wear," Lexie said. "I have tons of stuff because we used to play so often so I'm sure that I can cover Tay and Gabi. If you guys have anything with you that would work just wear that. If not, we have a whole Jail Break closet in the game room. My mom's built a collection over the years, she started picking up all black clothing when she would be at the store just in case we decided to play sometime and the some of the guys weren't prepared."

The others were satisfied with that answer and slightly amused that Mrs. McQue had bought a whole closet worth of Jail Break clothing.

All six hopped into Lexie's boat one by one and began their trek to the island. The guys' competitive side had already begun to take over as they began talking about strategies. Lexie was trying to figure out how they might divide into teams, taking into account each of the boys' personalities. Gabriella and Taylor just listened to the boys and tried to pick up on pieces of their strategies to use later in the evening.

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_Well, I know that this is WAY late and if you are still with me and still reading I hope you enjoyed it! I am posting the next chapter very soon because I know people have been waiting and I don't want to disappoint anyone._

_Writer's block hit me and it was either continue writing the story and know that it was not going to be done the way I wanted or take a break from it until my mind had time to settle. The chapters will be more consistent from now on and I again just want to thank each of the readers.  
_


	25. Jail Breakin' All Night Long

**-Chapter 22-**

_-Jail Breakin' All Night Long–_

The boat hit the shore and Lexie was surprised that the island seemed relatively quiet. Troy jumped out of the boat first and extended his arm to help Gabriella, Taylor and then Lexie down as well. All three girls said a "Thank you" to Troy and began to walk up the path to the house.

The boys hung back a little to finish their discussion on the strategy of the game.

"Okay," Chad began, "So the three of us are going to be on a team together. We still need four others though."

"Well, they are probably going to want Lexie on their team because they know how she plays," Luke said.

Troy nodded his head in agreement. "We should get Marc on our team too, he's really athletic and I'm sure he's good at this."

Chad looked at his two friends, his concentration on the matter clear before he spoke, "Right so we just have to make sure that one of us is one of the people picking teams. Captain, that's always been a strong suit for you, I say you take that job. Then you'll make sure you get us two and Marc and you can decide who else you think should be with us."

Troy laughed. "Chad, I'm not the captain of any team any more, but I'm can pick our team for us. What about Gabs and Tay, should I get them?"

Both of the other boys pondered this for a minute, all of them getting startled when they heard Gabriella's voice calling to them.

At the sound of her voice the boys started to dash up the stairs, Chad and Luke both confirming to Troy that he should try to get Gabriella and Taylor on their team as well.

The guys reached the top of the stairs and saw Gabriella standing on the patio looking around.

"Hey Gabs, what's up?" Troy asked nonchalantly.

Gabriella looked at them all skeptically. "What took you guys so long?"

"Oh, we were just…talking," Chad answered as the boys shared a look.

Gabriella just rolled her eyes and told them that they had to come get ready and help her and Taylor decide just how much black clothing they should wear.

All eight of the other guys were already dressed and ready to go, so they had made themselves comfortable in Lexie's kitchen, grabbing a snack before the game began.

Fifteen minutes later everyone was standing on the back patio. The patio and pool lights lit up the area so that the players could all see each other. The guys had convinced Gabriella and Taylor to really get into the game so the two girls stood in black clothing from head to toe. The girls wore everything from black beanies on their heads to black gloves on their hands and black sneakers on their feet, just like everyone else who was playing.

"Okay, so we'll just have two people pick teams. Is that cool with everyone?" Mike asked.

"Yeah, that works for us," Troy spoke up, knowing that the question was directed to the USC people who hadn't played with them before. "I can start one team if that's okay."

"Yeah sure," Mike agreed, "I'll start the other."

With that Mike and Troy went to the front of the group to begin picking team members one by one. Troy picked first as it was his first time playing on the island and without a thought he chose Chad. Mike went next and decided to choose Sean. As they continued the teams quickly grew and within five minutes the teams were made.

The plan had worked for the guys and they ended up with the three of them as well as Marc, Taylor, Gabriella and Bobby on a team and decided to call them selves the _Sneak Attack_. Mike had chosen Lexie second as he thought Troy might try to take her. Mike's team was then rounded out by Steve, Zac, Kyle and Ty and their chosen team name was _Blaze_.

Due to Troy picking first for teams, _Blaze_ got to choose if they wanted to capture or be captured first. After a brief team conference it was decided that they would like to capture first. The seven of them walked inside to give _Sneak Attack_ a chance to disperse around the island.

Troy turned to his team as the others went inside.

"Okay, Bobby and Marc you two know the island the best. After that it's probably Chad so I think the three of you should go separate ways and one or two of us will go with each of you."

"Who is going to come back if someone gets captured?" Bobby asked.

Marc spoke up right away, "I'll be first in line to come back. If I get caught, I think Troy should be the next one in line to come free us. He's really fast."

"Fine by me," Troy threw in, "If I get captured how about Bobby is next in line and then after that Luke."

Taylor and Gabriella listened as the boys talked, trying to remember who was doing what. However, as the boys just continued talking the girls realized that they were not going to have time to get very far from base before the other team came back out if they did not leave soon.

"Guys, I know that this is all important, but don't you think we should leave here?" Gabriella questioned.

"She's right," Marc agreed quickly, "Gabriella you can come with me, we'll head out this way to start."

With that Marc and Gabriella headed down an embankment and into a place that Gabriella hadn't been before.

"Taylor, you can come with me," Bobby spoke up next, "That way you three can stay together to start that way Marc, Troy and I are all separated so we don't get caught at the same time."

The boys reluctantly agreed as they watched Taylor follow Bobby over the edge of the patio and into some bushes. Troy, Chad and Luke then made their way down the steps and onto the open beach before ducking into a part of the island that was more hidden.

Half an hour into the game Taylor and Bobby found themselves in "Jail" and waiting for Marc to come and set them free. Both of them were yelling as loud as they could so as to be heard by their teammates.

As Marc and Gabriella were ducked between two bushes they heard the yells coming from the back patio.

"Okay Gabi, I'm going to go and free them. You stay right here. If I get caught, you can stay here and wait until Troy sets all three of us free or you can do your own thing if you think you hear one of them near here." Mark explained.

"Got it," Gabriella whispered with a nod of her head. "Good luck!"

Marc then looked around and began making his way towards the patio. Gabriella watched him walk away and then sat quietly to try and listen for anyone else coming near her. Once she saw and heard that the coast was clear she allowed herself to take a deep breath and laugh at her current situation and the way that everyone was very serious about the game.

Upon hearing a laugh, Kyle crept towards the noise. He realized that it was Gabriella and continued walking without making a sound.

As Kyle reached her he lent forward and whispered, "And what is so funny?!"

Gabriella jumped and whipped her head around to look at him.

"Kyle! You scared me! I didn't even hear you coming!" Gabriella scolded.

Kyle just laughed. "That was kind of the point Gabi. So, I'm guessing if you're here that some of your teammates are near here too?"

"Ah, now that is information that I cannot divulge," Gabriella informed him.

Just then they both heard a loud, "JAIL BREAK!" yelled so that most of the island could hear. Gabriella immediately knew that Marc had set Bobby and Taylor free and was trying to think fast on how to get out of this spot before Marc came back to find her and Kyle ended up catching them both.

"Dang it, we had three of you too." Kyle complained.

"Well, you still have one," Gabriella said, "You better get me up there."

Kyle gave her a skeptical look. "Most people don't ask to get taken up to 'Jail' Gabi."

Gabriella just shrugged. "Well what can I say? I like to play fair."

The pair then heard quick footsteps coming toward them. Gabriella's eyes got large as she knew the footsteps had to be Marc coming to meet up with her again. Kyle hunched in his spot to try and hide behind Gabriella trying to figure out who was coming toward them.

"Stop, I've been caught!" Gabriella yelled from her place.

They heard the footsteps stop suddenly and Gabriella let out the breath she had been holding, feeling relieved that she hadn't gotten both herself and Marc caught.

"Man Gabi, I could have had both of you," Kyle said.

Gabriella smiled triumphantly at him. "That was kind of the point Kyle."

"Haha, you're so funny. Let's go."

Kyle grabbed Gabriella's hand and began walking her toward the Jail. As was custom, Kyle then took over guarding the Jail as he was the last one to bring someone to it.

When they reached the patio Gabriella started yelling that she was in Jail, but gave up after a few moments as she was sure Marc already knew she was there.

"Come on, we may as well talk while we're both here," Kyle said to her as he took a seat in the middle of the patio.

Gabriella had to agree. She was actually rather grateful for the break after all of the running around her and Marc had done. She walked toward Kyle and sat herself down across from him. They began talking and after a couple of minutes both forgot that they were actually in the middle of a game.

Marc sat at the edge of the patio, just waiting to set Gabriella free. He couldn't set her free until she was far enough away from Kyle that she could get to him or the other side of the patio without getting caught again. As he sat there, Marc couldn't help but smirk. Kyle was normally very competitive when they played, but obviously Gabriella was a good distraction.

Fifteen minutes later Marc still sat just watching Kyle and Gabriella talk. He finally got bored enough that he decided he needed a new plan. He picked up a twig from the ground and threw it onto the patio with a curved arm so as to make it look like the twig came from a different direction.

Kyle heard the twig hit the deck and immediately looked around. Just as Marc had hoped, the action took Kyle right back into the game.

Kyle jumped up onto his feet and looked around the edges of the patio before looking back down at a slightly startled Gabriella.

"I'm sorry Gabriella; I have to go check around the perimeter. I'm really glad that we got talk more though," Kyle said sincerely.

Gabriella smiled as she too stood up. "That's okay. We are still playing the game."

Both then began to walk around the patio, Kyle trying to find someone to catch and Gabriella looking for Marc whom she expected to set her free.

Marc saw Gabriella standing right near him and Kyle inspecting the other side of the patio. He quickly shot his hand onto the patio and yelled, "JAIL BREAK!"

Gabriella jumped when she heard it, but reacted quickly and jumped off of the patio toward the voice. Marc grabbed her arm and pulled her away as fast as he could. The both heard Kyle close behind them so Marc jumped over a bush and slid down behind it, pulling Gabriella down right next to him.

Gabriella was out of breath and placed a hand over her mouth as they heard Kyle's footsteps slow down.

**CBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCBCB**

Four hours later everyone was collapsed in the cabana. Both teams had been completely caught and had completely captured the opposing team. Now, they had taken off some of their layers and were reminiscing about various parts of the evening as they enjoyed the slight breeze of the night.

"You guys weren't kidding when you said you take this seriously," Taylor commented.

"You got that right," Ty called back as he threw his head back and drank some more of his water from the bottle in his hands.

"You did really well though," Bobby said. "I must say, Taylor I was very impressed. I think both times we got caught it was my fault."

"Yeah, Gabriella did really well too," Marc added. "I thought for sure Kyle was going to catch us after I freed you that first time."

Gabriella sighed at the memory. "I think that was the fastest I have ever run."

Lexie smiled at all of her friends before she added to the memories. "My favorite part was definitely when I caught Luke, T, and Chad."

"Yeah, and that was the only time we got caught," Chad pointed out.

They continued talking until a few people began to fall asleep. Lexie grabbed her phone from one of the tables to check the time and saw that it was already close to three in the morning.

"Are you guys all spending the night here?" Lexie asked, her question obviously directed at her eight friends from High School.

She received a collective yes from the guys who were still awake and decided to try to coax the ones who were asleep inside the house.

Going over to Luke first she gently woke him up and then suggested that he go up to the bedroom that had been deemed as his. One by one she convinced the guys to go inside until it was only herself, Gabriella, Taylor, Chad, Troy, Kyle and Marc left outside.

Troy, Chad and Marc were glad for the quiet and were too caught up in their discussion of their freshman basketball season to realize that most of the other people had already gone inside.

Gabriella stifled a yawn as she continued talking with Taylor and Kyle about life on Lexie's island.

"You know, you can go to bed," Kyle told her with the slightest hint of a smirk on his face.

"No way, I'm not tired at all," Gabriella protested, "And there's no way I'm letting you win this bet that easily."

"Bet?" Taylor questioned, intrigued.

Gabriella and Kyle informed Taylor of the bet that they had made when Gabriella was in "Jail" that Gabriella could stay up later than Kyle. Gabriella realized how childish it sounded, but in the midst of their conversation it had just been made without question.

"Wow, betting on whom can stay up the latest. Now that's a real college thing to do," Taylor said with a shake of her head and a roll of her eyes.

"Fine Tay, I bet I can stay up later than you can tonight," Gabriella challenged.

Taylor groaned and narrowed her eyes slightly at Gabriella. "Gabi, that's not fair! You know I'm going to have to play now."

Gabriella smiled, feeling satisfied and glad to know that Taylor would be just as tired as she was in the morning. Kyle just laughed at the exchange.

"So, what are the terms of the bet?" Taylor asked.

"Well, we didn't actually –" Gabriella started.

"First one to fall asleep has to make or get the other two a CD," Kyle answered, as if they had already decided upon it.

"Sounds good to me," Taylor agreed.

Gabriella agreed as well and the three picked up their previous conversation where it had let off.

Lexie stood up from her seat next to Marc and let the boys know that she was going to go inside. As much as she loved hearing about their basketball seasons she was extremely tired and knew that someone would end up waking her up earlier than her liking.

She walked over to the other group of three, rather surprised that both Gabriella and Taylor were still awake and made them aware of her decision to go to sleep as well.

Lexie looked at the two groups who still sat talking outside and could only wonder if the reason that Chad and Troy were still awake had anything to do with the two girls who were currently talking to one of her oldest friends. With a shrug of her shoulders and the knowledge that she probably would never actually find out if she was correct, Lexie drug herself up to her bedroom whispering a goodnight to all of the boys in the living room as she passed.

"Do you guys want to go sit down on the beach and talk?" Kyle asked the two girls, "It's really nice down there at night."

"Yeah, we had a bonfire down there just the other night," Gabriella recalled, "It was actually one of my favorite times here so far because the ocean just seemed…louder or something."

"Great, then let's go," Kyle said, standing up from his seat as the two girls did the same.

Out of the corner of his eye Troy caught the three of them standing up.

"You guys heading in for the night?" Troy asked, now facing them.

"We're actually going to go down to the beach," Gabriella answered, "Do you guys want to join us?"

The three boys glanced at each other, trying to make a decision. Marc shrugged his shoulders showing the other two that he did not care.

"Sure, we'll come down," Troy answered for them.

Gabriella and Taylor smiled as the three other boys stood up. The six of them made their way down the stairs, the ocean getting louder with each step. Troy reached in front of him and quickly grabbed Gabriella's hand, giving it a tight squeeze. When Gabriella turned around at the action Troy sent her a wide grin, which was returned with a smile of her own.

"Hey, if we stay up long enough, maybe we can watch the sunrise," Chad commented, surprising his friends with the words.

Taylor sent him a smile and answered, "We should try! I would really like to see that."

They each settled onto the ground in a form that resembled a circle.

"I would too," Gabriella agreed, "I've never actually seen a sunrise before."

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_Here's the next one! I'm back into writing for this story so the updates should be coming more frequently! ____ Thanks again!_


	26. A Day at the Beach

_I do not own anything that has to do with the High School Musical Franchise. _

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Previously:

Gabriella and Taylor smiled as the three other boys stood up. The six of them made their way down the stairs, the ocean getting louder with each step. Troy reached in front of him and quickly grabbed Gabriella's hand, giving it a tight squeeze. When Gabriella turned around at the action Troy sent her a wide grin, which was returned with a smile of her own.

"Hey, if we stay up long enough, maybe we can watch the sunrise," Chad commented, surprising his friends with the words.

Taylor sent him a smile and answered, "We should try! I would really like to see that."

They each settled onto the ground in a form that resembled a circle.

"I would too," Gabriella agreed, "I've never actually seen a sunrise before."

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**-Chapter 23-**

_-A Day at the Beach–_

Taylor opened her eyes slowly, the bright sun piercing into her tired eyes. She brought her hands up to rub her eyes and hoped the action would help them adjust quicker. After a moment her eyes were able to open fully and she saw Chad's face smiling down at her over his shoulder.

"Morning Chad," Taylor spoke.

"Well good morning to you too," Chad greeted cheerfully.

Taylor just laughed as she sat up and finally took in her full surroundings. The sand was still beneath her and the ocean was just a couple of yards away. She smiled as she saw Gabriella and Troy still sleeping in the sand beside her and took note that neither Kyle nor Marc was there anymore.

"Any idea what time it is or what time we actually went to sleep?" Taylor asked Chad in a whisper.

"Nada one," Chad answered, "But that sunrise was worth it, don't you think?"

Taylor smiled at the memory from just a few hours earlier.

"Yeah, it was worth it. I think that is something that I'll remember for a very long time."

"Definitely," Chad agreed as he looked out over the ocean once again. "You want to go see if the water is warm?"

Taylor laughed lightly. "Chad, the water is always warm."

"Not _always_ Tay. Plus, it's a good excuse to actually get up and go in the water."

Taylor couldn't help but concede as she glanced up at Chad.

"Alright, you win, but I'm only going in up to my knees at the most. These clothes are Lexie's and I don't want to return them all soaking wet."

Chad nodded his head in agreement as both of them stood up. They both brushed sand off of themselves as they walked. Taylor laughed as she saw all of the sand that had made its way into Chad's hair.

Chad gave Taylor a confused look, silently asking her why she was laughing.

"Your hair is full of sand," Taylor informed him as they both reached the water.

"Aw man," Chad complained. "I forgot about that. It's never going to come out!"

Taylor laughed again, something she found herself doing constantly when Chad was around.

"Here, I'll help you," Taylor offered.

Chad bent his head toward her as Taylor reached up and began ruffling her hands through his hair, successfully making large amounts of sand fall from it.

"Careful Tay, you never know what you're going to find in that hair!" Troy called from the beach. He had woken up a couple seconds earlier and his eyes had just adjusted to the sunlight.

Chad rolled his eyes and stood up. "Haha, you're so funny Bolton!"

Troy stood up and walked towards Taylor and Chad, brushing sand off of his clothing as he went.

"Morning guys," he greeted. Troy then stretched his arms over his head and let out a large yawn. "Marc and Kyle head back in already?"

"I guess so," Chad answered, "I just woke up a couple of minutes before you and a couple of seconds before Taylor, but they were already gone."

Troy and Taylor both shrugged in response.

"You know, I'm surprised how comfortable it was to sleep on the beach. I was sound asleep." Chad commented.

"I know," Taylor agreed, "I thought it would get too cold or be really uncomfortable without a pillow, but it was just peaceful."

Troy closed his eyes and took a deep breath, fully relaxing and enjoying the carefree spirit that Lexie's island gave off. Taylor and Chad smiled as they saw Troy do so and both found themselves doing the same thing.

"It's Sunday," Gabriella stated. She had woken up and was watching her three friends from her place on the shore.

The three in the water slowly opened their eyes back up to look at her. Troy began walking towards her first and Taylor and Chad followed suit.

"The day we go back to school," Taylor said, her voice showing she felt the same way that Gabriella did about the matter.

"Man, we have to go back already?" Chad asked. He allowed his knees to give way and sunk back into the sand.

"I know, and this is pretty much our last real break until April," Troy agreed. Troy slipped down into the sand and sat himself facing Chad and slightly next to Gabriella.

Taylor sat down in the seat that would complete the square and crossed her legs in front of herself.

"Why is it your last break until April?"

"Basketball," the two boys answered together.

"Don't get us wrong. We love the sport and can't wait until the season actually starts, but when we get back it's going to be brutal," Chad explained.

"He said that we didn't have any pre-season games scheduled for this break so he would give it to us without any practices, but that we better be ready to play like we have never played before when we get back. It's going to be weight training five days a week, solid conditioning for at least two weeks straight and then either practice or a game six days a week from then on out," Troy said.

Gabriella looked from Troy to Chad wide eyed. "I thought you guys were already fully practicing."

"Yeah, you go to the gym at least once a day, sometimes even twice. You mean you'll have to put even more time into basketball? How will you get any school work done?" questioned a concerned Taylor.

The boys both just shrugged and let out a dry laugh.

"Such is the life of a student athlete," Troy conceded with a sigh and another shrug.

"And in college, it's more like an athlete who happens to be a student," Chad said.

Troy looked at the girl's long faces and realized that the two of them were probably feeling bad for Chad and himself.

"Hey, it's fine. It was our choice to play ball. Just wait until you see us play, you'll know why it's worth all of the time and dedication. Don't let us get you down about this. Inside, we both truly can't wait to start full out practicing again, right Chad?"

"Oh yeah, we're definitely excited about this upcoming season. We only complain because we can with you two. There's nothing like stepping out onto the court and knowing that you have a whole team behind you. Eh, I can't really explain it."

"Well, you won't only have a whole team behind you, you'll also have your very own cheering section," Gabriella replied happily, her smile now returning to her face.

"We better!" Troy said on a laugh as he began to stand up. "Come on, we should probably head back in and see what everyone else is up to."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I just want to go dip my feet in the water for a moment first," Gabriella said, taking the hand Troy offered and standing up as well.

After taking a few more moments outside with just the four of them together, Chad, Troy, Taylor and Gabriella made their way back inside. When they reached the top of the stairs they heard the voices and as the neared the house the voices became louder and louder.

Inside Lexie's house all of the boys and Lexie had woken up and were now eating a brunch type of meal. The two older McQue's were sitting at the island in the kitchen just watching the kids eat.

The back door opening and closing went unheard and the four simply slipped into the kitchen and said a good morning to Mr. and Mrs. McQue.

"Well good morning you four," Mrs. McQue greeted, "Did you have a peaceful rest down on the sand?"

"Yeah, it was actually much more comfortable than I thought it would be," Chad answered.

Gabriella smiled, but tilted her head in slight confusion. "How did you know we were down there?"

"Oh, Kyle told us when he came in. Congratulations on winning your bet ladies," Mr. McQue said.

Gabriella and Taylor both laughed in response and thanked Mr. McQue. They were then each handed a plate as Mrs. McQue gestured to the table and told them to help themselves to any of the food.

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An hour later all was generally quiet in the house again. The Huntington boys had all gone home for the day, Mr. & Mrs. McQue had left to attend to some things at the hotel and the six remaining were sprawled around Lexie's living room watching a movie.

Noting both how tired they were and the fact that it was there last day there for awhile, the friends decided to relax inside and watch a movie and then spend the remainder of the day outside.

The credits for the movie began to roll and only Lexie and Luke even stirred in their seats. The other four remained motionless in their places on the large couch, groaning when Lexie stood up and clapped her hands loudly to get their attention.

"Come on guys, let's go outside. The sun is waiting for us!" Lexie said.

Luke stood up with her and smiled as she tried to get the others up as well. He looked at the clock and mentally noted that they had quite a while to themselves before they left to attend the Sunday Evening Service at the McQue's church where they would meet up with and say goodbye to all of the Huntington boys.

"Come on Lex, let's go get changed and head out. I'm sure they'll follow us soon. Plus, we can take a ride on the Jet Ski's without them."

Upon hearing this, Chad sat up straight. Due to his sudden movement the rest of the couch shook causing Troy, Taylor and Gabriella to move as well.

Chad sprung quickly up from the couch and shoved Troy's shoulder to make him move as well.

"Guess that means we're getting up," Troy said dryly.

"Can we just, relax today?" Gabriella asked.

Chad looked at her perplexed. "Isn't that what we've been doing this whole time?"

"What I think she means," Taylor interjected, "Is can we skip the competitive sports today and just lay on the beach, which I am in complete agreement with."

Gabriella smiled at her roommate. "Exactly what I meant Tay. Let's go get changed."

The two girls popped up from the couch and followed Lexie up the stairs. The three boys rolled their eyes, but followed the girls as well.

The rest of the afternoon was spent doing just that. Well, for the three girls at least. Lexie, Gabriella and Taylor took two large sheets and laid them side by side in the sand. Each one of them had a book, for enjoyment and not class, sunglasses and a drink of choice. Three beach chairs rested at the top of the blankets just in case the girls wanted to read while allowing the front of them to soak in the sun. A small boom box was set at one corner of the blankets and flip-flops anchored the other corners in place.

Lexie felt giddy. She had never actually laid out this way with other girls and while she had to admit that she was more of a sports girl, this was extremely relaxing and she found herself even happier that she had gotten these two girls with her as roommates.

The three boys however, were not quite as calm. They had tried to appease the girls and just lay on the beach with them, but within minutes Chad's leg was bouncing up and down with restlessness. After being yelled at by Taylor to stop with the incessant bouncing Chad finally gave up and was the first to cave as he stood up from the blankets. Troy and Luke gladly agreed, both of them already fidgeting and just steps away from bouncing.

Instead, the guys had chosen to go for a swim in the ocean. Unfortunately the waves that came into the island were not good enough for surfing so, the guys spent a good amount of the afternoon trying to catch waves on some of Lexie's boogie boards. Once exhausted from the activity the guys collapsed onto the blankets, effectively getting reactions out of each of the girls when the purposefully got water all over them, and took a breather. The boys were up after only minutes of sitting and spent the rest of the day swimming, throwing a Frisbee around, riding the Jet Ski's again and bothering their three resting friends as much as possible.

It was a perfect afternoon. Six friends, letting all of their cares in the world fall to the wayside as they simply enjoyed each others company and the peace and serenity that the private island off of the pacific coast offered.

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_I slightly apologize for the short length of this chapter. My plan was to continue this chapter further however, when writing this seemed like the right place to stop. Thank you for reading! : )_

_--Also, I am toying with the idea of having someone help me co-write a couple of the upcoming chapters. I have the story mapped out so if anyone is interested, please just let me know (in a review or a PM would be perfect!). I can let you know what I am thinking and then we can decide if it would be a good writing match. Thanks!  
_


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